Armored Core: The Uprising
by Ace of Aces 1990
Summary: Based off of the events of Armored Core for Answer, this tells the story of the no longer "nameless mercenary", Jack. this tells the in depth story of what happens during and behind missions. this is my perspective of what happens in the story, enjoy.
1. Chapter 1

Armored Core the Uprising

Chapter 1: The old Raven, a mysterious girl, and the great escape

* * *

Anatolia, more than ten years ago.

* * *

Inside of his Armored Core NEXT "White Glint" the signal lights and warnings kept flashing and screaming to him. The Raven from Anatolia continued to fight hard against Joshua O'Brian, his friendly rival, frequent business partner, and previous owner of White Glint, and his NEXT "Aretha" a prototype NEXT with unbelievable power.

The armor rating was lower than %50 and ammunition in his rifle was low with the only weapons left being the two wing shaped WC-IR24 triple barrel laser cannons. Yet, the Raven sat in the cockpit of White Glint, as quiet as ever. He kept pressing on in the attack, quick boosting left and right, dodging fire from Aretha while keeping a constant boost toward it.

"Damn! You're pretty good Raven, but I wont die that easily." Joshua O'Brian calmly commented to the Raven.

But the Raven still remained silent. Instead of speaking he responded with bringing up his back mounted WC-IR24 triple barrel laser cannons and fired six devastating shots of brilliant light. The six shots hurled toward the Aretha and grazed it.

"SHIT! *panting* You almost got me Raven, heh heh, I'd better keep my Guard up!" Joshua O'Brian responded.

But the Raven still pursued him. The Aretha had some incredible boost capabilities, but no matter, nothing phased the Raven, whether he was afraid or not still remains a mystery. Did he ever feel fear in battle? Or did he not have time to?

Joshua continued his attack on Anatolia while trying to evade the Raven, but he could never outmaneuver the Raven, no one ever could. The Raven fired another six shot simultaneous burst of energy toward Aretha. It missed completely, the energy was running low on the WC-IR24s, and with thirty two shots per wing, he was down to twenty six per wing.

The Aretha's quick boost was able to dodge the shot. This is bad, if he can dodge something like that, it might prove difficult for the Raven, all he would have left to work with after the wings would be the rifle and his laser blade. The Raven decided to try again one more time, he lined up his shot to Aretha as best he could, while on constant boost, and fired.

This time, all six shots of that amazing light hit him dead on. Ammunition count in each was now down to eighteen.

"UGH! DAMN! I'm not done yet!" Joshua Said as Aretha's warning lights and signals went berserk. The Raven continued to attack. He brought up his rifle and began firing his last ten rounds. Joshua had dodged them all.

"Out of ammo for that thing? Hmm, I guess all you have left is that set of wings and your laser blade eh? Ugh! better watch out for those." Joshua said

As he purged the rifle, a handgun came from within the arm of his NEXT. Only 72 rounds total. Not sure about how much damage he could deliver, he began firing.

"NO WAY! A HANGAR MOUNTED WEAPON!? BUT THERE'S ENOUGH WEIGHT ON THAT NEXT WITHOUT IT! HOW….?" Joshua responded in surprise.

The Raven managed to land a majority of the rounds from his handgun onto the enemy NEXT but it wasn't enough damage. With the handgun's ammo depleted, he purged the handgun and brought up the WC-IR24s again and lined up for another shot.

"Oh shit! C'MON MOVE!" Joshua yelled to his NEXT.

The Raven fired another six shot simultaneous burst, hit the Aretha completely. The Aretha stopped moving.

"So this…is the end…Its for the best." With those last words, Aretha exploded. Joshua's last words had some satisfaction in them, no one was ever sure, but some say that he had planned on his death after destroying Anatolia. Joshua O'Brian was presumed dead, thus being the end of the National Dismantlement War. What happened to the raven and his field operator, Fiona Jarnefeldt.

It is not confirmed, but it is believed that they left the on-going wars between the mercenary companies, and lived a quiet life for a while……that is……until the Kojima type devices released their deadly particles throughout the atmosphere. Nothing is even theorized about what happened to them afterwards.

Now, more than ten years after the first sighting of the deadly Kojima particle outbreak, everyone knew that the particles would swallow up the surface of the planet as soon as it began, no one could do anything about it except escape the surface.

The new world leading power, the League of Ruling Companies, developed massive airships meant for holding the civilian population seven thousand meters above the surface. They called these airships, the Cradles. Though it took a few years to finish, about half of the human population are aboard the Cradles. Now the surface of the planet is just a large battlefield where the NEXTs constantly fight. Another development came from each company and faction during the time of the Cradle's development. Massive weapons called Arms Forts rose from each company, each type having its own strengths, weaknesses, and special characteristics.

These devastating weapons now mark the largest and most dangerous weapons on land, in water, and in the air. With the power of these Arms Forts, it is said that not even highly trained LYNXs could stand up against these monster machines.

However, with the conventional militaries (such as the U.S. military, U.S.S.R., British Armed Forces, etc.) constantly deteriorating, there's not much defense for the cradles aside from hired mercenaries from the League of Ruling Companies and their Mercenary managing organization, Collard, and they don't even last that long.

Problem is, some of the mercs that were hired to protect a Cradle at one time, can (and most of the time will) be hired by another company to destroy it. And so, it has left the civilian population to lose their trust for the mercenaries and even hate them, despite that the company they support most is the company that built the Cradles and that the mercs are their best defense.

So the civilians decide to rely on their selves as much as they can, having the police forces joining in defense and pulling late middle school and high school students out of classes as well as other civilians older than that as militia during attacks…

Meanwhile, Line Ark, the largest surface based power, has a powerful military asset, a NEXT called White Glint…could this be the Raven…or is someone else piloting it?….

* * *

Cradle 02 7000 meters above earth's surface present day. (Jack's perspective)

* * *

My name is Jack…I don't know my last name. My family never told me…they never tell me anything. All they do say is that I'm the son of 'scumbag' mercenaries. I don't imagine my parents did anything that bad. And why do they blame me for them being mercenaries? Its not like I'm going to be one…A son doesn't choose his parents.

Anyway, I live with my family aboard Cradle 02, above the pacific. I'm still in high school but things aren't going well for me…no friends no help on anything, everybody is either afraid of me or just flat out hates me just because of my parents. Could they have really been that bad? I cant help but wonder.

I'm heading to my job now, My watch says it's about 5:00 now, I fly cargo planes from my Cradle to the nearby Cradles and basically ferry cargo and supplies, I've also flew in the fighters for defending the Cradles from extremists on multiple occasions, only reason that I'm ever in the cockpit of a fighter is because I'm the only one who can fly a plane aboard this Cradle.

I've even flew defense for some of the earlier Cradle models and various aerial battleship prototypes, but those never made it past prototypes…not yet anyway. Although I wonder why I even bother defending these people sometimes, it seems kinda pointless. As bad as it sounds, I don't hate them. I don't understand why I should put my neck on the line for people who could give a shit less about me. With the way everyone treats me, it just doesn't seem fair. I just don't see anything good for me if I stay here. Hmmm, maybe joining the Collard organization under the League of Ruling Companies would be a good idea.

Yeah, I would be a mercenary and everyone here would only hate me even more…but, I wont have to be exposed to that anymore…Yeah a life of complete freedom, where I'll have other people who'll welcome me with open arms, and I'll be able to pilot those cool Armored Cores…

Hmmm I am sixteen though, would they even accept me? Then again, they do have programs to train new people with the education needed to do the job…I think I'll-

"WARNING! WARNING! INCOMING ATTACK! ALL CIVILIANS INCAPABLE OF COMBAT REPORT TO YOUR QUARTERS! ALL COMBAT PERSONEL REPORT TO BATTLESTATIONS!" The Captain yells. The alarms! Oh man! An air attack!? I guess I'll miss my job, I've gotta hurry!

"MOVE! MOVE!" I yell as I run through the Cradle's halls. I have to get to my fighter real soon! If I don't, We'll be in trouble!

"JACK! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!?" The Cradle Control Tower yells to me. He just has to yell doesn't he?

"I'M ON MY WAY! JUST MAKE SURE MY FIGHTER IS READY FOR TAKEOFF!" I yell back to him.

"ROGER! YOUR FIGHTER IS READY! JUST GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE!" Control continues to yell. Man this has been real old for a while.

"C'MON GET OUT OF THE WAY WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!" I yell to everyone around me. I understand that they're in a panic but still, they don't have to crowd the freakin halls! I'm almost to the hangar though! As soon as I get to my fighter, I'm gonna have to put her into full afterburner! Man the crowds are really bad, its like a sea of people! Everyone running and screaming! Ugh its hard to move!

"JACK WHY THE HELL AREN'T YOU HERE YET!? WE HAVE ENEMY PLANES ATTACKING FROM ALL SIDES! WE NEED YOUR AIR SUPPORT NOW! HURRY THE HELL UP!" Control Yells at me….AGAIN! Ugh gawd I'm getting tired of this! "GODDAMIT! MOVE OUT OF MY FREAKIN WAY, I HAVE TO GET TO THE HANGAR AND LAUNCH!!" I yell to the crowd. Everyone just turned to me and looks pissed now that they know its me, they're moving but they're giving me the evil eye and telling me to hurry up to the hangar! WHAT THE HELL!? AH!

I HAVE TO FOCUS! I cant afford to get distracted! Now that I have a clear path to the hangar I need to move! Finally the hangar!

"WELL IT'S ABOUT TIME YOU SHOWED UP, BOY!" Control starts again. Beautiful! I get caught in bad traffic and I get yelled at!

"YEAH YEAH JUST GET ME IN THE AIR!" I yell back. Man cant these guys just cut me some slack once in a while? "GLADLY!" Control seemed to sound pleased, like he always does when I take off. Well while he's clearing me for takeoff I'll do my flight check. Ok now to start the plane.

"COMMENCING PRE-FLIGHT CHECK, OIL PRESSURE, NORMAL, WEAPONS, ARMED, ENGINE SOUNDS GOOD, OXYGEN LEVELS NORMAL, GUNS, ARMED AND READY, FUEL, TANKS FULL, ALL SYSTEMS GO!" My plane is ready I just need takeoff clearance now!

"JACK YOU ARE CLEAR FOR TAKEOFF! HURRY UP AND SCRAMBLE!" Control gave me clearance!

"ROGER THAT! TAXIING TO THE RUNWAY!" I respond to Control. Why is there an attack now? This is the fifth time this week! Who the hell are these people!? All right I'm on the runway!

"THIS IS JACK, CALLSIGN: FIREBIRD, LAUNCHING! INITIAT SCRAMJET SEQUENCE!" UGH! SHIT I'M MOVING FAST! My jet must have been loaded with something that makes the engines go NUTS! MY JET IS FLYING DOWN THE RUNWAY! 0 to 300 Knots in SECONDS!

I was never aware that even the X-02 was able to take this kind of immediate stress! Ok I'm in the air now! Where are the enemy forces!? And why hasn't Control contacted

"FIREBIRD LISTEN UP! YOU'R UP AGAINST A DOSEN F-22 RAPTORS, AND A FULL SQUADRON OF NORMALS! YOU'R OBJECTIVE IS NOT TO LET THE NORMALS GET INSIDE! UNDERSTOOD!?" Control finally gave me my objective!

"ROGER THAT CONTROL! FIREBIRD ENGAGING!" I'm ready for combat! I have my orders! Time to do some damage!

"DON'T SCREW THIS UP!" Hmm, Control didn't seem to have the same hatred in his voice as he normally does! That's weird!

"Jack!" That voice! Is it…? IZZY! The one person who has ever been nice to me and the only reason I fight so hard to protect the Cradle. My twelve year old little sister, Izzy. She is the only thing that keeps me from being a total jerk like the rest of our family.

How did she get into the control room? Oh, I think I know, they must have let her in. That's what I don't understand about my family and everybody on this Cradle. They treat her extremely well but not me. I'm not resentful to her but I just don't understand why they treat us differently from each other.

Maybe they're thinking they can take the innocent, young mind of a girl and keep her from being a merc. Hmm, must have thought that since I'm a guy that I'm screwed. Oh well, no sense in thinking about that now. I've gotta do what I can to make sure the Cradle doesn't fall! for her sake.

"I know you can do it Jack! Go out there and take care of those jerks!" She believes in me so much. She looks up to me despite what everyone else says about me.

"I will sis! I'll make short work of those guys!" I tell her this in hopes to keep her confidence high.

"YEAH! AND MAKE SURE YOU COME BACK TOO! I WON'T FORGIVE YOU IF YOU DON'T!" She really does care about me…the only one who does.

Ok, time to do my job! PULLING UP! Heh, I kinda like the upside down view! But no time for sightseeing! Ok missile armed. Huh? AIM-9X SIDEWINDERS!? These are antiques!

What the hell am I supposed to do with these!? Oh, well at least I have AMRAAMs and BVRAAMs to work with. Ok.

"TARGET LOCKED! ENEMY PLANE: F/A-22 RAPTORS! AMRAAM ARMED! FOX 3!" I launched one of my air to air missiles! Hope it hits! AN EXPLOSION!

"MISSILE HIT" Alright got a kill- HUH?! **MISSILE ALERT beeb beeb beeb…** ENEMY PLANE LOCKED ON! HOW WAS I SO CARELESS!? AH, NO MATTER, YOU CANT KEEP A LOCK ON A FAST MOVING TARGET! Bank left! Pull up! Flares! Bank right! Scissors maneuver! Break! Pull up! Drop in behind him!

"GOCHA! SIDEWINDERS ARMED! FOX 2 FOX 2!" I launched two more air to air missiles! Only have 4 AMRAAMs, 5 BVRAAMs, and 4 Sidewinders left! Another explosion!

"MISSILE HIT! ALRIGHT 2 DOWN!" But ten to go! Plus the Normals!

"DON'T GET COCKY FIREBIRD! FOCUS AND SHOOT THEM DOWN!" Well whaddya know, Control got his hate sounding voice back! I kinda missed it!

"ROGER THAT CONTROL!" I yell to him. Man I cant stand him!

"All fighters, engage the enemy plane! He's no average pilot, don't get careless and don't let him get to the Normals!" The enemy squadron is talking about me? Hmm. This just got a whole lot more interesting!

"Roger that sir! Concentrating fire on the enemy fighter!"

"Squad lead to all fighters, we will make Line Ark proud! There's no way a single plane will be able to defend the Cradles! Lets get the job done right!" Line Ark! That's the largest surface based company! And they're against the Cradles?!

"ARMING ALL AIR TO AIR MISSILES! LINE ARK SQUADRON! YOUR GOING TO FAIL!" Target lock to Multiple targets!

"AMRAAMS, FOX 3!" All AMRAAMs USED! C'mon! get them! MISSILE HITS! ONE! TWO! THREE! C'mon hit the last one!…It missed! FOUR MISSED!

"THREE MISSILES HIT! LAST SHOT TRASHED!" Man I'm down to seven missiles! Damn! WHY COULDN'T THE X-02 BE DESIGNED TO HOLD MORE MISSILES!?

"All Line Ark fighters! This one seems to be more than an average ACE! we've already lost too many planes, if we keep this up we will all be shot down and the Normals will be defenseless! We're gonna have to pull out! This operation is a failure! All Normals return to base!" They're…retreating?

"THIS IS FIREBIRD! PURSUING ENEMY TATGETS!" I yell to command hoping he will clear me for continued engagement!

"NEGATIVE FIREBIRD! RETURN TO THE CRADLE!" WHAT!? HE WANTS ME TO DISENGAGE!?

"WHY!? I HAVE A GOOD SHOT AT THEM!" Somehow, I don't think that will change his mind.

"I DON'T CARE FIREBIRD! I ORDERED YOU TO DISENGAGE AND RETURN TO THE CRADLE! IF YOU DON'T, YOU WILL SUFFER THE CONSIQUECNES!" He yells THAT to me?! Damn I hate when he pulls this bullshit on me!

"Roger that Control! I could have gotten them though!" I respond to him. Why did he have me disengage? Well I guess I don't have to worry about my missile situation anymore.

"Firebird, just Return to the Cradle! You don't need to be in that fighter anymore!" Control said that sounding a bit more pissed than usual! I wonder what's going on? Oh well, time for landing. "This is Firebird beginning landing checks." I cant think of anything I did to make them even more mad than they normally are. Hmm, was it my flying? Or could the fuel in my plane? Man what could he be so pissed about?

"Firebird, your clear to land!" Now he just sounds cold. What's his deal?

"Roger that Control." I respond. Man, I hope nothing bad happened there. Ok now I'm approaching the hangar. Its amazing how small things look when I'm inside the cockpit of a plane. Ok landing in 3...2...1...

"Touchdown! Landing complete!" Maybe I should have just taken this fighter and left the Cradle altogether. It's not like I have anything of value here. OH! JESUS! My sister! There's no way I'm leaving her here with this poor excuse for a family…we do have cloths to pack, and there are some things I need to get if we're gonna leave.

I'll worry about that when the time comes! Lets just get this plane into holding platform 2. Ok taxiing to the designated aircraft platform, center in 3...2...1...center.

"Activating magnetic locks." The password screen just showed up, each plane onboard the Cradles have their own individual magnetic locks, comes in handy on the battlefield from what veteran pilots have told me. Hmmm…should I make a new password?…one that only I will know about? It might be a good idea. Sure I'm stealing a plane but you know what? I'll take it as compensation…

I've never once even got a 'thank you' for anything I do aboard this heap. I always get the lowest pay for my work, I've never been treated the right way and I'm SICK of it! This will be my way to make up for all that. This plane is going to be mine and me and my sister will live in a better place for both of us!

Besides, I'm going to need something to start off with if I'm going to me a merc. Come to think of it, the plane is already mine seeing as it was assigned to me, I am the rightful owner if the jet. Interesting how things work now a days, a pilot owns the assets he uses for his job. Ok, no one watching? The hangar ground crews seem busy…Control Tower is occupied…

Hey! There's Izzy, she's waving to me…yeah she is always happy when I land safely. I'll signal her to wait for me. Still have things to take care of in here. Ok no one looking…I'm in the clear. Ok, new password…everyone still occupied?…ok good…entering my new password now…********…no one will be able to fly this jet but me now. Ok time to get out of here before someone gets suspicious. Canopy opening.

"HEY! JACK!" here she comes, running and laughing in joy to see me as I climb down from the X-02s cockpit.

"Hey sis!" I say as I meet her with a hug.

"I knew you'd come back! You always do!" She's the most precious thing to me. I'll do everything in my power to protect her…even taking her away from here and living in the work environment of mercenaries.

"Yeah, Come on Izzy. Lets go home." She grabbed onto my arm as I said that.

"Jack?" She sounded so soft!

"Yeah?" I wonder what she wants?

"Do you know what mom and dad were like? Did you ever see them?" I only wish.

"I…I never knew them. I don't know what they were like." I hope that we can find out the truth about them, weather they were mercenaries or not, I don't care.

"But I promise…" she's looking at me with intent.

"I will find out what is the truth about them, for both of us." She has that smile, the one that keeps me going.

"Thanks Jack." I wont break this promise, Izzy. No matter what.

Ok, now I think I should just avoid conversation with anyone except for Izzy for a while, with how pissed Control sounded, I'm not sure it would be a wise decision to talk to anyone.

"Ok I'm out of here. Be back tomorrow." I tell them this as Izzy and I leave the hangar, but I'm not going to be here when they expect me.

"Just get out of here boy!" Ah, the lovely sound of insults. Well I'm not going to have to deal with this any longer. I'll be here a whole lot earlier than I normally do. Maybe like 3:00 AM. No one but the People in the bridge of the Cradle will be awake then. I'll have to make my get-away fast before they can do anything to stop me. Good thing that the fighters are always ready for a sortie, would be hard to get past the hangar doors without being armed…assuming I cant open those doors from the plane. Oh! I need to talk to Izzy about us leaving.

It's a good thing the halls are dead, perfect time to talk about it.

"Izzy?" I say to her as we stop. She's looking at me, probably wondering what I'm gonna say.

"Yeah Jack?" I have to tell her what I'm planning.

"I…I'm not staying here." She looks surprised.

"I cant live like this anymore. I'm going to leave the Cradle and join the League…And I want you to come with me." Now she looks in a mix of happy and sad.

"W-why cant you stay?" She sounds almost scared.

"You've seen the way everyone treats me. Everywhere, everyone talks down to me and many people have beat the crap out of me just because our parents were supposedly mercenaries. Even in my work I'm being treated like a slave." She is looking even sadder now but realizing everything she has seen.

"Our families make me pay for my own food on top of rent and I'm not being paid enough to keep up with that. They're breaking me down, making me survive on the bare minimum. I cant keep living like that. You've seen all that, Izzy." There's tears in her eyes. She fully understands!

"I want you to come with me because you are the only person who understands me and even cares about me. Please, come with me, you don't want to stay with people like this do you? People who can hate someone just because of their parents?" She looks shocked!

"I…I'm so sorry Jack!" She's crying and she just grabbed onto me. Its my job to protect her no matter what kind of situation. Her crying…is no exception.

"It's ok, Izzy." I say as I hold her. She's clinging on to me.

"I will protect you, Izzy. No matter what. I will always protect my little sister."

"Yes I will come with you! I've wanted to leave here for a while myself! But I had no way and…I didn't want to leave without you Jack!" Huh!? She…really wants to come? I was thinking the opposite. I thought she wanted to stay and would be afraid of leaving the Cradles.

"Ok then, we're gonna get up real early in the morning, and be at the hangar at about 3:00, get to the hangar and fly my jet out of here. Ok?" I hope this works.

"Are you sure this will work, I don't know much about planes but, doesn't your fighter only have one seat?" OH SHIT I FORGOT ABOUT THAT! Uh…well we have to make due with that. I guess it'll be a tight squeeze.

"Uhh, as much as I'd hate to do this to you but…" She looks awfully curious.

"You're gonna have to sit in my lap. It will be a tight squeeze I know but it's our only option." This is the only way I can get out of here with Izzy, she's smart I'm sure she understands.

"EEEEHH!? YOU WANT ME TO DO WHAT!?" Yet I had a feeling that would happen.

"It's the only way I can get you and me off this Cradle. I don't like it ether but it's our only option." She's thinking about it? If she wants to leave with me this is how we're gonna do it.

"What about a flight suit?" WHAT?! She's thinking about THAT!? Oh wait! I can't believe I didn't think of that!

"Hmm…OH! I know! I have special flight suits that are even child sizes along with G-suits and helmets in my locker back home! You can wear one of those!" Man I really am prepared.

"Ok…and…I guess sitting in your lap will be ok. I mean, you are my brother so I guess it's fine." Well at least she's willing to do it. Whatever it takes to get her safely off this Cradle.

"Ok lets get moving. The halls might be dead but anything could happen, lets not take a chance that someone might be listening." I tell her as we start walking again, things are getting serious.

"Ok Jack!" Wow, she sounds so confident. Lets lake sure she keeps that.

Hmm the halls are dead even more than I thought. And to think that they were so crowded before. Hmmm. About 5:43 PM now. I have a few hours to pack the basic necessities. Cloths, food, anything absolutely needed for survival until we get to the League HQ. I wonder why the halls are this dead?

Its not normally like this. Not unless there's a lockdown procedure going on but I didn't hear anything about lockdown, Man. this is weird.

"Hey Izzy, you sleep in my room tonight, ok?" Doing this will make sure we're ready at a moment's notice.

"Yeah! I'll set my personal alarm for 3:00!" She tells me. Wait, 3:00? That's the time we need to be in the hangar by.

"No! set it for 2:30. 3:00 is too late." if we get to the hangar later than 3:00 that will only decrease our window for escape.

"But you said we're getting up at 3:00." She says this to me with confusion, better clarify it for her.

"I said we will be in the hangar by 3:00." she's gonna be tired.

"we're gonna have to get some sleep early ok?" This hopefully will work.

"Ok! Good idea. This is kind of exciting. Tee hee!" I'm glad she's enthusiastic about it but…I just hope this doesn't ruin her life in some way or another, all I can do right now is assume that this is the right thing to do. Ok here's our home section, if I'm lucky everyone will be pre-occupied with something and just make minor insults so I can just go to my room. Ok door's opening. Good, they're pre-occupied with other things.

"Hi everyone we're back!" Good Izzy, just make it look like a normal day.

"Izzy! Welcome home, dinner's ready for you." hmm they're completely ignoring me. Strange, but I'm not complaining.

"You know, I feel kind of tired, I think I'll take a nap after I'm done eating." Good job sis. Just make everything look like normal. In the meantime, I gotta start packing.

I wonder why they're not saying anything to me, not even the slightest hint of aggression toward me. This isn't normal. Ok here's my room. Door's closed behind me. Good now I'm in solitude. Ok all I need is some changes of cloths, food, GPS, and particle scanner.

I'll just put my bag under my bed right next to our flight suits and helmets once I'm done. Man I REALLY hope this works. If not, me AND Izzy will be in trouble. Lets see, socks, shirts, pants, underwear, shoes, jackets…I think we're good on cloths, food…this should be enough, particle scanner, GPS. Ok all of that is packed, am I forgetting anything? Hmm nothing I can think of. Ok, time to get some shut eye. **sigh** laying on my bed I wonder how everyone's gonna get along without us. Then again, I'm not so sure I care. They never had the slightest care for me. Why should I for them? Oh well, not my problem anymore, better set my personal alarm…2:30, ok I'm set. I love this personal alarm system, a small device attached to my body that has an alarm only loud enough to wake me up. I'm glad I have this, with this I'll be able to wake up without anyone knowing. hmm? My door opened?

"Ok, Jack, I'm here. I even got some things together for the trip." she's all set, I'm real proud of her.

"So what did you tell everyone else? I'm sure they asked questions of why you have a bag of stuff and why your coming in here for a nap." She's pretty smart, I'm sure she came up with something believable.

"Oh I just told everyone I'm going to a friend's for a sleepover tomorrow and that I just wanted my stuff ready today and that I wanted to talk to you and take a nap here, your bed is VERY comfortable! Tee hee!" Wow, that is a believable story.

"Nice job bud. Now, lets get some sleep, we have a big day tomorrow." She really is something.

"Ok, night." She yawns. She's out. Man she can get to sleep fast. Hmmm…getting out of here should be no problem, the only potential problem is…probably…gonna be…getting out…of the hangar……

**Personal alarm beebeeb beebeeb beebeeb… **

"Uhnnn…is it time already?" As I look over at the clock, I realize what we now have to do.

"…morning…lets get to it!" As she deactivated her alarm she's already up and moving. We just need to get to the hangar unnoticed by anyone and…!

"Wait a minute! My bag and the flight suits! Where did I put them? Man all that preparation and now I cant find-! Oh…here they are. I forgot I left them under my bed. Ehhhh heh heh." Man I feel stupid now.

"Quit messing around and put on the flight suit! You said we're gonna have to hurry." She's right, I did say we have to hurry.

"Ok ok, Izzy, I'm up." I'm putting on the flight suit now, gotta be quiet about this. Ok zipped up, strapped in, G suit parts are on, helmet's on, ok I'm all ready, Izzy's all ready too. Not bad. with my bag on my back now… Ok 2:33,

"Time to go." I tell her. Ok I just need to ease the door open. Ok slowly, slowly, slip out quietly, first I slip out, and here she comes, ok, we're in the clear…from here anyway. Now to close the door, ease it in slowly and gently… ok door's closed. Good thing everyone is out cold. Moving across this floor is easy enough, thank god for sound proof material.

"HEY! WHERE YA THINK YOUR GOIN!?" AH! SOMEONE COUGHT US! Huh? No one's awake. Then who…? "GET BACK OVER HERE WITH THAT!" get back over where with what? Who's saying that?

"I'M TELLING YOU, THAT'S MY PIZZA!" Huh? PIZZA!? man I thought for sure we were busted. Man, that was a scare. Now we need to go, before someone does wake up. Ok the next door, gotta be extra careful. Grip he handle slowly…light pressure…turn…and push…it's almost open enough to slip out. "JACK!" OH NO!!! THEY ACTUALLY GOT US!!

"YOU CANT FLY…worth shit!" What!? They wake up and tell me that? Oh they've gotta be asleep…yeah they're all asleep. **both sigh.** Good thing too. We're almost out of here. Ok now to slip past…slowly…made it. Ok now for Izzy, slowly…made it. Now to close it…gently, easy, easy Jack. **click.** ok door's closed.

"Ok, I want you to hold my hand until we're in the fighter. Ok?" She nods, she has that

"I'm ready for anything" look on her face.

Now we just need to make our way to the hangar. Left from here, a right on the intersection and-HUH!? WHO'S THAT GIRL!? I don't recognize her! Better get out of sight! As I get behind the left wall with Izzy of the nearby intersection, I can still see her! DAMN IT! I should have gone right!

I'm holding Izzy out of sight and my hand over her mouth, cant risk any noise. Wait…who is she? I know there's twenty million people aboard every Cradle but…there's something different about her. I've ran into just about everyone else onboard this cradle and aside from my sister, they all give off the same vibe, but her…

What's she doing up this late? No one but the pilots should be up at this time of night…man she's pretty! Wait! That mechanic uniform! It's a Cradle 21 uniform! What the hell is she doing onboard Cradle 02!? Hmm, oh well, I don't have time to think about this now… 2: 41...we need to move.

Is she looking over here? OH SHIT! GETTING BACK INTO COVER! I think she saw me! Shit! I'd better move! Fast! Just need an opening… If we can get across this intersection, we can get moving to the hangar. I just need an opening. Oh god, my heart's racing! But no turning back now.

If we get caught we'll be in deep trouble. Ok she's not looking over here, I just need to make sure she keeps her attention away from me…maybe I have something expendable

"Izzy, stay quiet, I'm gonna try to make a distraction for that girl, as soon as she notices the distraction we have to run across the hall, got it?" she nods. Ok here goes come on I've gotta have something. HERE!

A screw should work, wait…since when do I have random screws in my bag? Oh well, whatever. Now I just need to throw it past her. Maybe I can get her attention over there just long enough for me to get past. Ok…NOW! I threw it…Oh no its gonna hit her! If it hits her she'll know it came from over here! Huh? It just missed her!? Phew that was close! **ding…ding, ding…**She heard it. Here's my opening.

"Now Izzy!" WE'RE RUNNING OUT IN THE OPEN NOW! SHE DOSEN'T SEE US! GOOD!…MADE IT! Ok now a straight shot to the hangar. Better continue to keep quiet till then. Man it's kinda stupid that I have to be running around my own cradle, in the middle of the night, being as stealthy as possible, in a full combat flight suit, and to top it off I'm dragging my 12 year old sister doing the exact same thing!

Ugh god! How the hell did I get into this situation? Oh that's right! We're leaving this crappy excuse for a lifestyle. I'm gonna things better for us. Its about damn time I did this! Just a little bit farther until we reach the hangar. Almost there Jack, just a little further. HUH!? FOOTSTEPS!? OH SHIT! SHE'S FOLLOWING US!?

"Izzy, the hangar is just past this door! Quickly, we need to get in before she sees us!" Good thing its dark, it will be a few seconds before she can see us.

"Got it!" she says as she begins opening the door to the hangar. Ok the door is just open enough for her to slip through. Hurry up! She can almost see us! Ok she's in. now for me. Quiet Jack. Ugh! Come on she's almost here…made it. Now ease it back. **click** ok it's closed. Phew! Ok, all we need to do is get in my plane and get the hell out of here.

"Ok, I left the X-02 in holding platform 2. Lets get to it." it's a good thing no one is in here at this time of night. No one to hear our footsteps, they echo In here. Ladder's down, cockpit's open, we're good to go.

"Let me climb in first, then you get in right after me, ok?" I say as I climb the ladder.

"Ok, but where are we going to keep our stuff?" she asks as she climbs the ladder.

"There's a compartment that will hopefully fit both our bags." Ok here's the personal compartment, wow! Our bags actually fit!

"Come on." she lands right on my lap. I strap us both in the same harness and both our G-suits are connected to the plane.

"Izzy, put on your flight mask." I tell her as I put on mine. Engines active. I love the sound of a fighter starting up. Oh the password screen came up! Time for the code…********…ACCESS GRANTED Closing the canopy. Disengaging magnetic locks and taxiing to the runway. Activating system check…fuel, tanks are full, engines, fine, ammunition, fully loaded, oil pressure, in the green, ejection systems, operational, all systems ready. we're on the runway and ready for takeoff. Ok lets open the hangar doors. Hmm…they won't open.

"Izzy, this might be a bit shocking, brace yourself." Arming AMRAAM. Target the hangar door. Heh, She was right, this is exciting. Now I don't have to worry about anyone seeing us as long as we make it out of here.

"Jack? What are you doing!?" she asks.

"AMRAAM, FOX 3!" MISSILE AWAY! **BOOM! **WOW, THAT WAS COOL! Man her eyes lit up! Uh oh the alarms are going off!

"INITIAT SCRAMJET SEQUENCE!"

"Huh? JACK! THAT GIRL! She…isn't alerting anyone?" Huh? the girl is smiling and nodded to me. We nod back to her. She was seeing us off. Its like she wanted us to make it off the Cradle. It looks like she's saying something but I cant make it out. UH OH! Now there's the ones who'll stop me if I don't leave NOW!

"Arming tactical music." I say as I put on 'goodbye' by SR 71.

"ENGAGING AFTERBURNERS! HOLD ON IZZY!"

"!" Izzy screams as we fly down the runway! DAMN! I CAN FEEL HER BODY PRESSING DOWN ON MINE AS WE GAIN SPEED! DAMN, THIS FUEL!

"JACK! GET YOUR ASS BACK HERE WITH THAT JET!" control…well what took so long?

"JACK! YOU UNGRATEFUL LITTLE-" Now I don't have to listen to him anymore.

"GOD I love radio silence! Ok we've cleared the gate! Now to find the vector of the League HQ-" **BOOM!**

"WHAT THE HELL!?" THEY'RE FIRING AT ME! Time to evade!

"KEEP HOLDING ON IZZY! WE'RE GOING VERTICLE!" Afterburners, pull up! Now flying up at a perfect 90 degree angle! Gotta get my altitude above their firing range! I think 9000 meters total altitude will work! Climb, climb, climb! 7300 meters!…AH!

"AAHH! WHAT'S HAPPENING JACK!?" Damn! There's so much flak!

"THEY'RE FIRING ON US! STAY CALM" 7600 meters!…Man the flak is exploding all around us! 7900 meters!

"AAAHH!" Izzy screams. AH SHIT! Another flak burst right next to the cockpit! 8200 meters!… just 800 meters to go! **missile warning BEEB BEEB BEEB BEEB...  
**

"A MISSILE! AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH! COME ON!"

"JACK WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO!?"

"DON'T WORRY I'LL GET US OUT OF THIS!" breaks! Pull up! flares! Now at a 180 degree angle!

"OH MY GOD WE'RE UPSIDE DOWN!" She screams. I hope I can get past this missile and continue my climb! 360 DEGREES! JESUS! HER BODY IS PRESSING SO HARD AGAINST MINE! HARD…TO BREATH! AH SHIT HERE COMES THE FLAK! KEEP PULLING UP! SHE'S CLINGING TO ME FOR DEAR LIFE! DROPPED TO 8017 METERS! 0 degree angle!

"come on come on come ooonn!" 90 DEGREES!

"FULL AFTERBURNERS!" We can hear and feel the X-02's engines! They're roaring with power! YES! CONTINUING CLIMB! Come on baby! Come on! 8200 meters! GOD, I'M LUCKY I'VE DODGED THIS MUCH FLAK! She's got her eyes shut tight! 8400 meters! Gotta stay ahead of this! STAY AHEAD! 8600 meters!

Just 200 meters to go! Almost there! 8700 meters! Almost there! 9000 meters! MADE IT! Level out! Good, she's more relaxed now.

"Phew! That was one wild ride! You know I'm gonna send a message back to that cradle. Opening com channel."

"I have to tell ya. That was some good shooting, gave me a rush!" I wonder what they'll say.

"JACK! GET YOUR ASS BACK HERE WITH THAT JET! THAT'S CRADLE PROPERTY!" Oh he's trying to pull something new. Hmph, that's not gonna fly.

"Wrong! This jet belongs to me! It was my job to fly jets and cargo planes for that cradle and I quit by leaving. The jet is mine! Good bye!" I say as I close the com channel. I'm right and they know it.

"Jack?" She asks.

"Yeah?"

"That was real scary but…thank you for bringing me with." I just return a smile to her.

"Ok, I have to find the League HQ. I'll try to find it through my GPS, good thing I was able to get a military GPS system." Searching for desired location…

"That's weird. It can't find it. Hmmm. What should I do?…OH! That's right, if I'm going to be a mercenary, I need to go to the Collard organization. I bet they can be found with the GPS." I start putting in the information of my desired location.

"Mercenary? But aren't they the kind of people who attack the Cradles?" Oh shit! I never told her that.

"Oh man, I'm sorry. I forgot to mention that. Yeah I'm going to be a mercenary, they're paid good and the League supports very well all the mercs that stay loyal to them." I tell her hoping that she understands.

"Ok, I'll support your decision." What a relief. Ok…searching…Collard locations found. The onboard computer is feeding information about collard.

"Locations? There's more than one HQ for collard? Interesting…apparently they have mobile HQs…Arms Forts. Wow, they use Arms Forts for HQs? that's interesting. And they even have Arms Forts from different companies…even the walking carriers built by the Bernard and Felix Foundation…very interesting.

"I wonder if I can land my X-02 on one? Lets see…It's been confirmed that multiple types of aircraft have been tested in the carrier's capability even aircraft such as the F/A-18, F-14, F-35 JSF and other carrier based aircraft along with 'non-carrier based' aircraft as well! Good! Ok plotting co-ordinates for Collard carrier Arms Fort. Looks like it's near an abandoned city in the desert…hmmm a strong magnetic field is there, I guess it hids them from radar." Auto pilot engaged. ETA to carrier, four hours and thirty minutes.

"I'll set my personal alarm to 7:00. Gonna get some sleep. I'm tired." I tell her.

"Ok, I wont set mine this time, I'll feel you moving when you wake up." she tells me

"Works for me. Night Izzy." Now the only thing on my mind is…who…that girl…was……**Personal alarm beebeeb beebeeb beebeeb…** mmm?…ok I should be in radio range of the carrier soon. I can feel Izzy moving around in her sleep. I think she might be waking up.

"Izzy?" I wonder if she can hear me yet?

"Izzy? Are you awake?"

"Unnnnmm…" she's still sleeping.

"Izzy, wake up, we have 30 minutes till we reach the carrier." not that this will have much effect…

"Mmmm okay…I'm up." Man she's tired. I hope I didn't push her too hard. I disengage the autopilot and as I reach for the flight control stick I notice that she's stretching. Uh oh!

"AH!" HER LEG BUMPED THE FLIGHT STICK! THE PLANE'S ROLLING!

"AAHHH!!" We both scream as we see the plane go inverted and on a decent! Come on I cant reach the flight stick! Dead vertical decent! Can't…reach the flight stick! 8700 meters! Come on! I need to get a hold of the flight stick! 8400 meters! Damn its hard to do with someone sitting on your lap!

"IZZY, SIT UP!" As she does so, I re-align the plane. Finally! I can reach it!

"Phew. That could've been bad. Good thing we're at a high altitude. Sure we're gonna have to drop to a lower altitude but let's try for a gradual decent eh?" I just hope she can go without stretching till we land.

"Sorry about that…" Oh man, going silent after an apology is NEVER a good sign.

"Hey, don't worry about it. It's completely natural to want to stretch after you wake up. By the way, you have a good sleep?" Hope this makes her feel better, the last thing I want is for Izzy to be sad.

"Thanks Jack." A smile, good. that's what I want to see. Now, where is that carrier Arms Fort?…

"Izzy, keep your eyes open for anything that looks like the Arms Fort we saw in the computer. We have about 30 minutes till we get there but just keep watch for it, I'll drop to lower altitude." I tell her.

"Ok" She responds. I push forward on the flight stick and I can feel the weight of Izzy's body gradually pressing against me as the nose of my fighter lowers to a downward angle of 45 degrees. We're loosing altitude quickly, but not as much as when we were at a 360 degree angle.

8300 meters. A steady decent, should be a smooth flight all the way to the carrier…only 23 minutes till we reach it. I wonder if we're in radio range? Opening com channel…

"Collard carrier Arms Fort in sector Beta Delta, this is former Cradle pilot, Jack Callsign: Firebird. Do you read me?" I can only hope we're in radio range…I only hear emptiness in the speakers. Hmm, I'll try again.

"Collard carrier, do you read?"…again nothing.

"Maybe we're not close enough to them?" Izzy asks me. Smart thinking.

"Probably not. I'm gonna keep it to radio silence for now, don't want to risk anyone against the league to think we're easy prey." I may have already done so, but I don't want Izzy to worry.

"You know, Izzy, since I'm going to be a merc now, I'll have to pay tuition for your schooling." She looked back in pure shock.

"WHAT!?" Oh yeah. She's shocked.

"Well, I have to get you into school of some kind and the schools of the Collard organization as well as the League have classes for whoever needs them, basically they can take in outcasts like ourselves. You can get all the education required for survival and for being able to work for them." I tell her.

"You'd do that for me?" She asks in a way that sounds happy and sad at the same time.

"Of course, I pulled you off the Cradle which means you won't be able to go to the schools there anymore, so I need to get you in school too." I tell her.

"How will you pay for it? You don't have a job anymore." She has a good point. Oh!

I have some money that I was able to save up, it's not much but it will get you started and I just remembered that Collard and the League pay anyone who joins them, even for schooling. So I can take care of that." I tell her. She's about to cry!

"Thank you, Jack." she says this with tears in her eyes. I wipe the tears off of her.

"Hey!" she looks to me.

"It's me job to take care of you. No matter what, got me?" She nods.

"I probably wont be able to give you as nice a life as you had aboard the Cradle but I'll do what I can to make sure you're healthy and comfortable." I tell her.

"Jack, don't push yourself too hard, ok?" she tells me.

"Hey, I have to-" *Radar warning, BEEBEEBEEBEEBEEB*

"OH, COME ON!" MULTIPLE ENEMY CONTACTS CLOSING IN! pulling up long range scanner!

"It's the same IFF of the fighters that attacked the Cradle!" I say out loud. They're in different fighters this time.

"Line ark squadron, this is your captain, target sighted, you are weapons free! Engage at will!" THEY'RE AFTER ME!? SON OF A BITCH! 7500 meters! **Missile warning BEEB…BEEB…BEEB BEEB BEEBEEBEEBEEB…**

I need to evade while keeping my heading!

"HOLD ON, IZZY, WE'RE GOING INVERTED! I say as I begin me evasive maneuvers. Roll 180 degrees, upside down, pull up, dead vertical dive, roll again 180 degrees, full afterburners!

"!" Izzy's screaming from seeing us go at 1500 knots toward the ground. Her body is pressing against me again! This time it's the most pressure. MAN WE'RE SCREAMING TOWARD THE GROUND! 5500 meters! Oh man this wont be good if I black out. 4500 meters!

"J-JACK! S-SLOW DOWN! ALL THE B-BLOOD IS RUSHING TO MY HEAD!" She screams. Just a little longer. Ease up from 1500 knots to 1000 knots. 3500 meters! **Missile warning, BEEBEEBEEBEEB… **IT'S STILL…ON…ME!? Everything…is…blurring around me… 2500 METERS! "!" I yell. PULL UP! LEVEL OUT! I managed to level out and now we're flying straight on to our destination at 500 meters above the surface! Ugh, man that was pushing it! 15 minutes to target!

"JACK! DON'T DO THAT AGAIN!" Izzy is surprisingly resistant to G-forces. I nearly blacked out and here she is wide awake.

"SORRY! BUT I'LL DO WHAT'S NECESSARY TO KEEP US ALIVE!" It's my responsibility to protect her!

"AT THE RISK OF OUR LIVES!? YOU NEARLY BLACKED OUT WHILE FLYING AT FULL SPEED TOWARD THE GROUND AND YOU SAY THAT'S NECESSARY TO KEEP US ALIVE!?" As much of a good point she has…

"WE'RE ALIVE NOW AREN'T WE!?" I still did it.

"QUIT PUSHING YOUR LUCK!!" She yells. Right.

"WE'RE NOT OUT OF THIS YET! FIGHTERS INBOUND!" I yell as the Line Ark Squadron pursue us.

"Cradle defender, why are you so far away from your home?" They're questioning me mid-flight!?

"THAT'S NONE OF YOUR CONCERN! TURN BACK OR I WILL ENGAGE!" Hopefully they remember our last encounter.

"Fool, you can't possibly expect to defeat us, not when the odds are against you. I have 11 planes under my command! You are alone and have no support! What makes you think that you can defeat us?" I've got a trick up my sleeve that you wont know about till its too late.

"JUST TRY AND SHOOT ME DOWN THEN!" I yell to them.

"JACK ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND!?" Izzy yells to me.

"Don't worry, I've got something planned!" I assure her.

"What!?" She asks.

"You'll see! Hold on!" I say as we fly low to ground at 50 meters above the surface and between the buildings. Any missile fired will more likely hit the ground than us at this height…assuming they stay at their height. 5 minutes to target. **missile warning BEEB…BEEB…BEEB BEEB BEEBEEBEEBEEBEEB… **The magnetism in the area should mess up the missiles. Ah! the radar's out! Well at least we have the odds with us now.

"That's your plan? Flying in a magnetic field, between the buildings, with the radar out, and, oh! Low on fuel!? YEAH GREAT PLAN!" She says to me in a sarcastic way.

"That's not all of my plan if you'd be patient!" 2 minutes to target!

"Remember that Arms Fort we're going to?" I ask her.

"Yeah, what about it?" she asks.

"Keep an eye ahead for it!" I tell her.

"Got it!" she responds.

If I can just get to that Arms Fort…**DING DING DING **AH! THE WING'S BEEN HIT BY GUNFIRE! THEY'RE ATTEMTING TO USE THEIR GUNS AT CLOSE RANGE! 30 seconds to target!

"JACK, THERE! I SEE IT!" She spotted the Carrier! Finally! Opening com channel…

"COLLARD CARRIER ARMS FORT, THIS IS FIREBIRD, FORMER CRADLE DEFENSE FIGHTER PILOT, REQUESTING SUPPORT FIRE!" I yell to them.

"Roger that Firebird, we have you in our sights, targeting the enemy planes now!" They respond.

"Begin climb to 1000 meters as soon as we tell you Firebird!" they instructed me to climb? I wonder what they're planning?

"Missile barrage will commence in 10 seconds, climb after the first wave of missiles have passed you!" they instruct me.

"ROGER THAT, AWATING FIRST MISSILE WAVE!" I respond.

"Missile barrage commencing in 5 4 3 2 1 Fire!" the missile batteries on the carrier just lit up and the countless contrails of white smoke from the missiles fly just above me and burst in mid air above the enemy fighters! What an amazing sight!

"Firebird, begin Climb now!" Oh right! Here we go!

"ROGER THAT!" I say as I pull up on the flight stick.

"Second missile wave will commence in 10 seconds!" They tell me. Will I be able to make it in time? 400 meters

"Next missile wave in 5 seconds!" they tell me. Shit I'm only half way! 4! 600 meters, 3! 700 meters, 2! 800 meters, 1! 900 meters, Impact! 1000 meters.

"OH MY GOD! THAT WAS CLOSE!" Izzy screams.

"You said it!" I say as I look behind us. The smoke clears and all I see are torn up parts of the planes that were chasing us. Above where the explosion was, I see white parachutes, if they have flight suits like mine and Izzy's, then we haven't seen the last of them. They probably do seeing as they decided to eject rather than stay in their fighters.

"Firebird this is Carrier Arms Fort: Prominence. Commence landing checks, you're clear to land." They gave me landing clearance. Good thing, I'm not sure how much longer we could have been flying. As I bring the X-02 to landing on the runway of the Prominence, I get a sense of relief that I've never felt in my life.

"3 miles to touchdown…2 miles to touchdown…1 mile to touchdown." they tell me. Touchdown in 3...2...1...down! Breaks!

"Nice landing Firebird! Taxi your jet to the center platform for storage Firebird." they tell me.

"Roger that Prominence. Oh! I would like to make a request." I tell them.

"Yes? What is it?" they ask.

"I have left Cradle 02's military so that I can join the League. I would like to become a mercenary of the Collard organization."

* * *

End of chapter 1.

* * *

Jack and his sister, Izzy, have made an explosive off of Cradle 03, a mysterious girl from another Cradle helped them off, and an ace fighter squadron is determined on hunting down Jack. Aboard the Carrier Arms Fort: Prominence, Jack meet's the captain, requisition officer, and his teacher for his armored core training, A new girl joins the team after two years seeming familiar, Jack can't place where he's seen her before, and the legendary fighter squadron won't give up on hunting Jack, but do they have a trick up their sleeve? Find out in the next chapter of Armored Core the Uprising: The new LYNX ! See you next job!


	2. Chapter 2

Armored Core the Uprising

Chapter 2: The new LYNX

* * *

Carrier Arms Fort: Prominence, Sahara desert. A few weeks later. (Jack's perspective)

* * *

They've accepted my request to be a mercenary for Collard, and by extension, the League. Izzy and I have been assigned our own room aboard the Prominence. They even agreed to have schooling for her as long as I work hard in my training and in the jobs helping the League. Best part of that is, they have her schooling going on now.

She started at the same time I started my training. I just feel bad though, there aren't other kids her age. This might be hard for her in the long run. But like I said before, I'll make things the best I can for her. The captain of the Prominence told me that he has a daughter about Izzy's age, and he agreed to have her brought aboard to spend time with her.

He told me that he wanted his 'little girl' to come aboard anyway but would feel bad if he did, seeing as there was no one else her age at the time. But now it works perfectly. He seems like a good man from what I saw of him. Very respectable. He even gave various privileges that I never expected.

A captain's quality room, access to the Armored Core hangar, those among other things that people normally don't get without being a high military rank. Others of the crew told me that the captain doesn't respect or even talk with many people outside of his crew, and that it's an honor if he acts this way towards any people new to the carrier. Especially the privileges he's given me and Izzy.

Something tells me that it has to do with more than just her. It bothers me for some reason. I actually feel uncomfortable near him because of it. Why do I feel like this? And more importantly, why does he act the way he does with me?…It's late tonight, 3:00 in the morning to be exact. Right now I'm going over the specs of the various Armored Core parts that we have aboard the Prominence.

You could say that studying everything related to Armored Core NEXTs is homework. They want me to focus on NEXT pilot training more than other schooling subjects for the time being. They've promised to give me the rest of the education I missed from high school when I have the time, more like college though.

I don't really care as long as I get it some way or another. I'm just gonna be a little late. Izzy's sleeping like a rock. It's amazing that she got used to everything as fast as she did. It was only a few days and she was used to her new surroundings. She amazes me by the second. Sometimes I wonder if I could leave her on her own one day and she'd be all right.

Anyway, they said that I'm gonna start training in the cockpit of an Armored Core NEXT in the upcoming week. They have already decided on my instructor, Serene Haze. Apparently she was a NEXT pilot during the national displacement war. Interesting. Being trained by a veteran pilot might not be vary pleasant but I'm willing to do whatever it takes.

It's a good thing I get up as early as I do, that way I can study for a long enough time all the specs of Armored Cores and different capabilities. With only 2 hours of sleep a night now, it's been difficult to stay focused on my tasks. I'm better than when I started but it's still difficult. And there's SO much in the day. Well it'll all be worth while as soon as I get behind the controls of an Armored Core. **KNOCK KNOCK**

"Jack, time for morning duties!" One of the Prominence officers tells me that it's time to start working. Well, better do as he says. He's pretty much my boss…as well as everyone else here. I'm on fighter and NORMAL maintenance today. 2:00 pm. Everything is so loud in here. All the engines and tools for maintenance going on at the same time.

I just got done helping on the last NORMAL in our arsenal. Now I'm working on my X-02

"GOOD JOB SON! THE NORMALS ARE LOOKIN GOOD! THE BOSS UPSTAIRS WILL BE HAPPY WITH YOUR WORK!" The chief engineer tells me. I never knew I was this good with machines. Although I know there can be improvement but at least I can do my part.

"WELL, I HAVE TO DO THE BEST I CAN RIGHT?" I reply back to the chief engineer.

"GOOD ATTITUDE BOY! KEEP IT UP AND YOU'LL BE FINE!" He says to me.

"THIS YOUR'S?" He asks me.

"YEAH! IF NOT FOR THIS PLANE I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN ABLE TO MAKE IT OFF THE CRADLE!" I tell him.

He just smiles at me. Odd. Its like, just by leaving a Cradle and joining the League, he and the rest of the crew aboard this carrier trust me, fully and completely.

It's unsettling, they all have a really strong trust in me, it's like they know something about me that I don't. Jesus! This is weird! I want to say something but that might bite me in the ass. As much as I like the better treatment something just doesn't seem right.

Am I just being paranoid? Or am I right to worry? Ugh! I don't know! I've got other things to worry about. I have Armored core training in a week. Well I'm done with my jet for now. Better turn in for today…the halls are all different than on the Cradle, no windows, real dark except for the lights along the floors, there's even pipes lining the ceiling.

And the halls are more hexagonal than the traditional square shaped halls. Here's my room, I wonder how Izzys' day was-.

"JACK!" Izzy opened the door and ran out to hug me! She missed me today. Just like every day I'm working.

"You know, you can come to the hangar and see me while I'm working." I tell her.

"I can?" she asks.

"Yeah, there's no reason why not. If you want, one of the officers here can bring you to the hangar to see me and when you want, they can bring you back here." I tell her.

"Ok, yeah I would like to do that." she says.

"Hey I've got more studying to do so I'm not going to be able to do much, but, if you can hold on a while longer, like about 2 months time, the Captain said that he wants to have his daughter aboard the carrier. He even told me that she could spend time with you. If you and her get to be friends it would be good for you, I know you don't want to spend time with me alone or other of the soldiers, so this is the solution. What do you think?" She looks excited.

When I told her that the captains daughter was coming aboard her face lit up.

"THAT'D BE GREAT! I'D LOVE TO MEET HER!" That's good. It's a good thing that she can be with someone her own age soon. That way she doesn't have to sit bored out of her mind while I study for my training or work on various jobs around the carrier.

* * *

*3 weeks later*

* * *

UGH! She's good! The only other Armored Core pilot aboard this carrier is Serene Haze!? AGH! TOOK A HIT TO THE ARM! Come on! Maintain boost Jack! Don't let off! I haven't even been able to hit her and she's already done a number to me! Ok!

"ACTIVATE COMBAT SCANNERS! ACTIVE RADAR! ALL SYSTEMS ACTIVE!" Ok she's using a light/medium Armored Core set, right hand, basic machine gun, left hand, another machine gun, back left, nothing, back right, plasma cannon, no shoulder weapons. **BOOM** AGH!

Took a direct hit from that damn plasma cannon! EVASIVE MANEUVERS! Quick boost left, forward, left, back, turn around, over boost! While I'm getting distance between me and Serene, let me go over my equipment again. Ok right arm, standard rifle, left arm, basic laser blade, back right, sniper cannon, back left, radar, AS missile shoulder weapon!

Ok and I have a medium armor set. Over boost is almost depleted! 10 seconds to depletion. I'll turn around as soon as depletion is complete. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, DEPLEATED! TURNING AT HIGH SPEED! Now I'm facing Serene! I have a longer range than her weapons.

"SWITCH FROM RIFLE TO SNIPER CANNON!" I'll wait till she gets into my range before I do anything! She's a ways off but incoming fast!

"PILOT! TWENTY SECONDS UNTIL ENEMY HAS ENTERED EFFECTIVE RANGE!" The computer tells me. It's acting as my field operator for training. Just wait for the right moment.

"FIFTEEN SECONDS UNTIL ENEMY HAS ENTERED EFFECTIVE RANGE!" The computer tells me. Come on! Keep comin! Keep comin!

"TEN SECONDS UNTIL ENEMY IS IN EFFECTIVE RANGE!" the computer tells me. Just ten seconds!

"GROUNDED AND READY TO FIRE!" I'll only be able to land two shots before I have to move! Better do what I'm gonna do quick!

"FIVE SECONDS UNTIL ENEMY IS IN FIRING RANGE!" as soon as I fire my second shot I'll boost into the air, continuing the barrage!

"ENEMY IN FIRING RANGE! COMMENCE ATTACK!" the computer tells me.

"FIRE!" One shot fired! SUCESSFUL HIT! Wait for reload! SHE'S COMING! SHE'S STILL COMING! I'LL BE IN HER RANGE SOON! COME ON AND RELOAD! *RELOAD COMPLETE*

"FIRE!" SUCCESSFUL HIT! BOOST NOW! GOING BACKWARD!

"FIRE!" MISS! DAMMIT! AGH! MORE MACHINEGUN SHOTS! AP DROPPING! QUICK BOOST BACK!

"FIRE!" GOOD HIT!

"You're doing good, Jack! You've really improved since last week!" Serene tells me over the radio. She certainly is a good pilot if she can evaluate me while handing someone's ass to them! Usually, they say LYNXs have to be focused %100! But her…she gives multitasking a new meaning!

"FIRE!" GOOD HIT!

"SWITCH TO RIFLE!" Acquire lock! MISSILES READY TO FIRE!

"LAUNCH MISSILES! FOX 2! FOX 2!" MISSILES AWAY! RIFLE LOCK! TEN SHOT SUCCESSION!

"FIRE!" HIT 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 MISSED, 8, 9 MISSED, 10 MISSED! DAMN I KNEW THIS RIFLE WAS WORTHLESS! Better just manage what I can with it!

"SWITCH BACK TO SNIPER CANNON!" Time to use the laser blade!

"OFFENSIVE MANEUVERS!" BOOST CUT! QUICK BOOST FORWARD! QUICK BOOST LEFT, RIGHT, FORWARD, RIGHT, LEFT, FORWARD, OVER BOOST!

"GIVE ME A COUNT TILL RANGE OF THE ENEMY NEXT!" I direct the computer.

"9 SECONDS TO BLADE RANGE, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, ENGAGE!"

GOT YA! I SWING…MISS! DAMMIT!

"You almost got me there, Jack! Try again! This time less over boost, you over shot me by a good distance! " Is she toying with me? Or encouraging me as an instructor? She had a playful tone in her voice! COME ON!

"I WONT MISS THIS TIME!" OVER BOOST! 500 FEET FROM ENEMY! CUT OVER BOOST! LASER BLADE! "YOU'RE MINE!" *SLASH* GOOD HIT!

"Ugh! Good Jack! Today's lesson is over! I'm impressed, Jack!" She's praising me even though I didn't land that many hits on her. Why did she stop the training when it was her doing so well and me doing so poorly? I must have pulled something that got her interest.

For some reason, she doesn't make me feel suspicious like everyone else from the Prominence, I know I think I'm overreacting but, why is it that she doesn't give off that suspicious are?…

* * *

*Five weeks later.*

* * *

"Jack I have an assignment for you" The captain tells me. I wonder why he picked me?

"I've sent light transports and fighters to pick up my daughter and haven't heard back from them. They were all really good pilots which I thought was necessary for the job. Apparently I was wrong." What is he getting at?

"Sir? What does this have to do with me?" I ask him.

"I need you to pick up my daughter. You're the best pilot I've ever heard of. I know If anyone can bring her here, it's you." I can't believe it! He wants me to play delivery boy! Well this is something that's beneficial to Izzy. And I get to fly my jet again- OH stupid! I need a two seater jet! Well there are some other jets to work with. Well…

"I'll accept the mission sir!" I tell him. I don't really see much of a problem anymore.

"I guess you could consider this your first assignment as a merc." he tells me. Looking at it that way doesn't seem all that bad…

"Preparing system check, F-14 SUPER TOMCAT, taxiing to launch elevator!" Oil pressure, good, fuel, tanks full, weapons, missiles loaded and locked, guns fully loaded, ejection systems, operational, radar, operational, hydraulics, good! I like the paint job on this craft.

The cherry blossoms design is very fitting to the craft.

"EVERYTHING CHECKED AND FULLY OPERATIONAL! ALL SYSTEMS GO!" I tell the Prominence control tower.

"Roger that Jack, we're bringing you up to the launch deck! You need a new call sign Jack!" a new call sign? What's so important about a new callsign? Well, 'Firebird' is the name that the Cradle teams gave me. Come to think of it I would like a new call sign.

"Roger that Control, any suggestions?" I ask them.

"Hmm…OH! What colors are the primary on your Armored Core?" They asked me that eh?

"It's not 'my' Armored Core actually." I tell them.

"Actually that's not what Serene and the captain are telling me." Huh!? They're giving me that Armored Core!?

"So what are the main colors?"

"Blue and white." Why do the colors matter for a callsign?

"How about 'Blue Blaze'?" Blue Blaze…I kinda like it.

"Roger that control, callsign accepted, Blue Blaze awaiting takeoff clearance." I tell them. Blue Blaze feels good. Ok the elevator has reached the deck.

"Blue Blaze to control, I'm on the launch deck!" I tell them.

"Roger that Blue Blaze! You are clear for takeoff! Steep ascent has been approved!" All right then, time to get the job done!

"Taxiing onto the launch ramp now!" I tell them.

"MAKE SURE YOU COME BACK AGAIN JACK!" Izzy's voice! She got into the control room?

"YOU'RE GOING TO BE GONE LONGER THAN NORMAL RIGHT? MAKE SURE THAT YOU COME BACK! YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE I CAN TRUST YOU KNOW!" I'll miss you too Izzy.

"Don't worry Izzy. I'll be back! There's no way in hell I'll leave you, so don't worry, you got me?!" I tell her.

"GOOD! I don't know what I'd do if you suddenly disappeared!" Man, I always knew she cared about me, but…

"BLUE BLAZE, LAUNCHING!" Full afterburners! UGH WHOA! This kind of fuel must be popular! Already up to 300 knots! Man it's been a while since I've been in the cockpit of a fighter. I might be a little rusty. That wont be good.

I'm halfway down the runway! 400 knots! I can feel the pressure of the aircraft's speed! It does feel better to fly this fast without someone of almost equal bodyweight in my lap! Makes things easier to do. 500 knots! Almost to the end of the runway!

"10 second to runway edge! 9, 8, 7...!" they count down the distance till I have to pull up.

"…5, 4, 3, 2, 1!" PULL UP! 90 degree angle ascent!

"I'M AIRBORNE! Requesting co-ordinates!" I tell them.

"Roger that Blue Blaze. Your objective is to land on a friendly aircraft carrier in the pacific. It's an older carrier of American origin, the Abraham Lincoln. The captain's daughter was transported onto the carrier for transport to the Prominence. But no matter how many transports were sent to get her, they all disappear from the grid. So you need to pick her up and make sure nothing happens to you in the process. You have the captain's full confidence, remember that! You CANNOT fail this assignment!" they tell me.

"Roger that control! I'll bring the package back safely!" I tell them.

"Uploading the co-ordinates to your onboard computer now!" they tell me.

"Roget that! Co-ordinates received! Continuing on to heading one two zero!" I tell them.

"Roger that Blue Blaze, have a safe trip." All I have to do is get to the Abraham Lincoln and pick up the captain's daughter and bring her back. Should be the easiest job for a merc, but when I think about all the pilots that just disappear…it makes me wonder, is there some hidden enemy Arms Fort nearby shooting them all down? I'd better be extra careful.

Especially since there were real good pilots shot down on this mission alone. This is bad. I'm actually worried about my survival, not that I didn't worry every time I went up defending the Cradle, but this time is different. I can't afford to fail! I have a good load out for anti-air and anti-ground targets.

I know I wont be able to do much against an Arms Fort but at least I have a chance of knocking out its AA systems or do something that can at least give me an opening to land and take off safely…I just hope I can pull this off. I'll look up the various aquatic Arms Forts data. Here we go, data files coming up. There's the out dated Giga-base…out dated but still powerful.

Lets see. A long range cannon, that could be nasty, Arms Fort Stigro, this one is supposedly extremely fast, the fastest of all arms forts. Massive scale laser blades, missile launchers. It definitely would be something to worry about, but I don't see why it would be out there, it's meant mostly for destroying naval fleets.

If there was one out there then the carrier would have been destroyed, not like the other Arms forts couldn't make short work of a carrier but, if you wanted to destroy it then Stigro would definitely would be used.

Continuing on, there is the possibility of aerial Arms Forts, like Eclipse, a large 360 degree laser cannon mounted on its belly. That would definitely annihilate the carrier. Again would be overdoing it with that thing. And it would have to refuel constantly.

The only one I can see being used for this kind of operation would have to be Giga-base. it's the only one that makes sense for stopping fighters alone. But why don't they attack the carrier? What do they have to gain by destroying all aircraft coming and going from it? Do they know about the Captains' daughter?

Then again its not like he's someone that could have a REAL effect on the war. What do they have to gain by keeping that carrier in check? This is weird! Anyway, ETA to carrier should be in a few hours. If I can manage to land on the carrier I can refuel, and make sure everything's in check. Good thing I packed the same flight suit I did for Izzy.

If we get into a combat situation, nothing serious will happen to her from the high G maneuvers. Don't worry captain, I'll take good care of your daughter, I'll bring her back safely…15 minutes to carrier. Ok I should be in radio range now…

"Carrier Abraham Lincoln, this is Blue Blaze of the Arms Fort: Prominence, Do you read me?" I hope they respond.

"Blue Blaze! Change coarse now and avoid the carrier!" They're telling me to go away?

"Negative, negative, I'm on my way to pick up the package and deliver it to the Prominence, requesting approach vector." I tell them.

"BLUE BLAZE I SAY AGAIN CHANGE COARSE IMMEDIATELY! ALL AIRCRAFT THAT TRY TO LAND ON THE CARRIER END UP SHOT DOWN! ABORT MISSION NOW!" So the fighters actually were shot down.

"CARRIER, WHAT WAS IT THAT SHOT THEM DOWN? DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS AS TO WHAT IT MIGHT BE?" I ask them, hopefully they can shed some light.

"WE DON'T KNOW! ALL WE KNOW IS THAT THERE ARE MISSILES LAUNCHED FROM LONG RANGE THAT KILL ANY AND ALL AIRCRAFT THAT GET NEAR! WE HAVE SUSPICIONS OF AN ARMS FORT!

SOME OF THE CREW MEMBERS SAY THEY SAW WHAT LOOKED LIKE A STIGRO!" WHAT!? But that makes no sense! Sure Stigro is the fastest Arms Fort but it's overkill to keep a carrier in check with that!

"ARE YOU SURE!? HAS A STIGRO BEEN CONFIRMED!?" I ask them.

"WE DON'T KNOW FOR SURE BUT THE CREW KEEP SAYING THEY SAW SOMETHING OF THAT SHAPE! ALL OF THE SIGNS KEEP GOING BACK TO SUSPICIONS OF A STIGRO! IF YOU VALUE YOUR LIFE, TURN BACK NOW!" They tell me. I can't afford to turn back. HUH!? What's that? The radar's going nuts! **fuel warning beeb beeb beeb beeb beeb **MY FUEL'S LOW! I CAN'T TURN BACK!

"CARRIER, NEGATIVE! I'M LOW ON FUEL AND WONT BE ABLE TO MAKE ANY LANDINGS OTHER THAN HERE! I CAN NOT AFFORD TO CHANGE COARSE! GIVE ME AN APPROACH VECTOR!" I tell them. Come on and give me a vector already!

"BLUE BLAZE, LOOKOUT! MISSILES HEADING YOUR WAY!" **MISSILE WARNING, BEEB…BEEB…BEEB BEEB BEEBEEBEEBEEBEEB… **Missile count is…HUH!? 50 MISSILES!? SON OF A BITCH! EVASIVE MANEUVERS! FULL AFTERBURNERS, PULL UP, ROLL, INVERTED, PULL UP, BANK LEFT, AIR BREAKS, PULL UP, MISSILES OVERSHOT!

**MISSILE WARNING BEEB…BEEB…BEEB BEEB BEEB BEEBEEBEEBEEBEEB…**

"OH COME ON! HOW MANY MISSILES DOES THIS GOD FORSAKEN ARMS FORT HAVE!?" HUH!? THERE IT IS! SO IT IS A STIGRO!

"CARRIER ABRAHAM LINCOLN, I'VE FOUND THE ARMS FORT! STIGRO CONFIRMED! BLUE BLAZE, ENGAGING!" I tell them.

"BLUE BLAZE! ARE YOU INSANE!? YOU'LL GET KILLED IF YOU EVEN GET NEAR THAT THING!" They may be right. I might be insane for doing this but it's my only option! **FUEL WARNING BEEB BEEB BEEB BEEB BEEB… **GOD DAMMIT! AT THIS RATE I WON'T BE ABLE TO LAND ON THE CARRIER! DAMMIT!

I'd better do what I'm gonna do quick! *MISSILE WARNING BEEBEEBEEBEEBEEBEEBEEB…* Hmm, I think I have an idea.

"ABRAHAM LINCOLN, WHAT KIND OF MISSILES ARE THESE!?" I ask them. If they're heat seekers…

"WHY DO YOU NEED TO KNOW THE TYPES OF MISSILES!?" They ask me….I might be able to use them against the Stigro.

"I NEED TO KNOW WHAT KIND OF GUIDANCE THEY HAVE! I HAVE AN IDEA!" I tell them. All I need to do…

"OUR RADAR OPERATORS SAY THEY'VE SCANNED THE MISSILES! THEY'RE GUIDED BY HEAT SEEKING SYSTEMS!" Perfect!

"RPGER THAT!" BANK LEFT, PULL UP, LEVEL OUT! I'm heading straight toward the Stigro! DROP TO 100 FEET! Gotta get closer! 10000 feet and closing! All missiles armed! Unable to acquire lock, but at the range I'll fire from, it won't matter! All I have to do is get my timing right and release! 5000 feet and closing! Getting closer! 3000 feet! Almost there! 1000 feet!

"AMRAAMS! FOX 3! AIM-9X SIDEWINDERS! FOX 2!" MISSILES AWAY! **BOOOM! **LET OFF THE AFTERBURNERS! PULL UP! That should get their attention! INVERTED NOW! FULL AFTERBURNERS! LEVEL OUT!

"Carrier Abraham Lincoln, my missile warning has gone silent. Did the missiles confirm a hit?" I ask them.

"Affirmative, all missiles have confirmed hit! And apparently you hit something important on Stigro, they're not firing anymore missiles. And it's completely immobile! Congratulations Blue Blaze! You just did the unthinkable!" They tell me. Feels good to be able to do something like that.

"This is Blue Blaze, requesting clearance to land." I ask them.

"Roger that, Blue Blaze, begin landing checks, you're cleared to land. I bet your fuel's pretty low." they tell me.

"Roger that, is the package ready for transport?" I ask them.

"As ready as she'll ever be!" they tell me.

"All right, I'm sorry to say that I won't be able to stay long. As soon as refueling is complete, I'm out of here! Cant risk that Stigro being ready to fire at me before takeoff!" I tell them.

"Understood, Blue Blaze, we will begin refueling your plane and prepare it for takeoff as soon as you touchdown!" they tell me.

"Much appreciated! Touchdown in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1." The arresting hook caught the rope. Man carrier landings are rough!

"Landing complete!" I haven't seen an old carrier like this. It's amazing that one of these relics are still operational. opening canopy. Huh!? That's odd. My particle scanner isn't picking up the usual levels of Kojima particles. In fact, its safe to walk outside without anti Kojima particle protection.

Explains why there are people walking on deck dressed in the older crew outfits. This is weird. As I step down from my F-14 Tomcat, I notice a group of men escorting a girl about the same size as Izzy. Hmm…I still have yet to learn her name.

I suppose she'll introduce herself. She's a Cute girl. Oh here they come! Hmm…I guess I didn't need to bring Izzys' flight suit. The girl already has one. Not bad.

"Blue Blaze, we welcome you aboard the Abraham Lincoln! What is your real name though?" they ask me.

"Jack. thanks for the welcome. Although I'm sorry to have to pick her up and run but I'm not much of a chance taker with monsters like that thing." I tell them as I point to the temporarily downed Stigro.

"Yes I understand, Jack. She's all ready to go, don't pull to many twists and turns with her, I'm not sure she'll be able to take it. Heh heh heh!" his joke is good but unconvincing.

"I don't know, my sister was able to take high G forces with no training and she's the same size as her. I think she'll be fine. Come to think of it, you look a lot like my sister." I tell them.

"REFUELING COMPLETE SIR!" Finally, the mechanics got done. That was actually kinda fast.

"Well that's my cue. Ready to go miss…?" I ask the girl.

"My name is Alice. And I'm ready!" she tells me. She sure is confident….

Back in the cockpit of my F-14, Alice and I are strapped in and ready for launch.

"Ok I'm going to ask you various systems and I want you to tell me check if it's working. Ok?" I instruct Alice.

"Roger!" Wow! She really is a soldiers' daughter.

"Do you know what to look for?" I ask her.

"Don't worry, I was taught what to look for by some of the pilots here." Good thing. I put on the breathing mask to begin system check and inhale a little air.

"Ok, com systems?"

"Check!"

"Oxygen systems?"

"Check!"

"Ejection seat?"

"Check!"

"Ok, that's good. All systems for you to worry about are operational." I tell her. I've already gone through the system check and everything is ready.

"Carrier Abraham Lincoln, this is Blue Blaze, we're on the catapult and ready for launch! Request takeoff clearance!" I tell them.

"Roger that Blue Blaze, takeoff clearance granted! Have a safe trip back to the Prominence." They tell me.

"You take care of yourselves." I tell them. I sure hope they'll be all right when the Stigro comes back online.

"BLUE BLAZE, LAUNCHING!" the catapult is throwing us faster than I thought! It's like my F-14 has more of that super fuel! Pulling up and gaining altitude to 5000 feet. Looking at the downed Stigro, I realize the true potential I have, the abilities I have. Somehow…I get the feeling that this is only a taste of the whole thing. Activating auto pilot.

"Hey Alice, it's gonna be a while before we get back to the Prominence. You should try and get some sleep. The plane's on auto so I'm gonna do just that." I tell her.

"Ok sounds good. Although…" although?

"Although, why did that thing on the ocean try to kill you and shoot all the other airplanes, but left the ship alone?" she asks. It is weird, I have a few theories but…none of them pleasant. And none that she can take lightly.

"I don't know, Alice. Let's not worry about it." I tell her.

"Umm, one more question." she says.

"Hmm?" I respond.

"Are you a mercenary?" She's quick.

"……Yeah."…..

Two years later

Starting a couple days after I got back to the Prominence, I got back to training. Izzy has been spending so much time with Alice and I've been training very hard up until now. Two years worth of in cockpit training in an Armored Core NEXT. Two years, and I've been growing attached more and more to the Armored core by the day.

It's like the Armored Core is a part of me whenever I'm in its cockpit. Izzy's been supporting me throughout this time, thank god. Heh, even Alice has been supporting me. They're about fourteen now. Man, I missed both their birthdays! Shit! I'd better do something nice for them, something extra nice.

Oh, I just remembered! I need to do maintenance on my Armored Core today! Damn! I need someone to help me out with this! Sure there are engineers here but they already have enough things on this carrier to do as it is. Man, I hope I can get someone assigned to be my AC mechanic soon.

Ugh how late up am I? Damn! 3:00 in the morning? I'd better stop roaming the halls and get back to my room. Weird though, I don't feel tired in the slightest, in fact, I haven't gotten more than two hours sleep on days I can sleep in. and the standard sleep time for other days just happens to be two hours.

Right now I should be getting some jobs but things are quiet today. It's kinda weird. Everyone says that even new mercs get piled with oncoming jobs. I haven't even got a single offer. At least I get paid by the captain for protecting the Prominence. Double the amount of other mercs seeing as I brought his daughter back and defend everyone including her.

But it's still not good enough to make things better. All I can do is maintain my AC and jet and buy food with that money…looking out the window, all I can see is a barren wasteland, destroyed buildings, what's left of them anyway…wow. I've never seen a sunrise from the surface before, or at least I never had the time to watch it. It sure is something. wow time really flies.

7:00 already. I should probably be getting to the hangar and see how things are going…It's pretty quiet in here. No one is in here today. Oh yeah, today was the crews' day off…with the exception of radar crews and possibilities of attacks. Ugh! I'm hungry.

I think I'll go and get some ramen if they have any. Haven't had that in a long time. I think I'll head over to the mess now. My NEXT, I haven't named it yet but I've made a new callsign from it. I think I'll just name the AC Blue Blaze…

WOW! The mess hall sure is crowded. I wonder if Izzy and Alice are here? Huh!? Haven't I seen her before? The girl at the counter, she looks so familiar…where have I seen her before? I can name distinct features, the ponytail, the side bangs, a soft, pretty face, that face is very familiar…Wait!

She couldn't be that girl from Cradle 02 could she!? No, there's no way that could be her. She didn't leave the Cradle. And besides, that's a different mechanic uniform. The girl I'm thinking of wore a Cradle 21 uniform. It's official, I'm going crazy. Grrrrrr I hope this line moves faster, I'm starving.

"HEY JACK! COME HERE WILL YA?" Huh? That's the captain.

"YES SIR!" I respond. He's ordering his food now. Man I'm going to have to get back in line. Dammit! At this rate I'm not going to eat in time for breakfast.

"You wanted to see me sir?" I ask him.

"Yes Jack. Cook, why don't you get our friend some food here. Some…?" he asks.

"Ramen, sir." I tell him.

"Yes, in fact make that two bowls of ramen." He tells the cook.

"Of course sir!" He responds.

"Here you go!" The cook says ah he hands us our food. Wow, that's what I call service!

"Come with me son." He tells me.

"Yes sir!" I respond. I cant believe I'm actually eating breakfast with the captain of this Arms Fort, despite what everyone says. I guess he sees something in me worth his while to be inviting me to breakfast. Everyone is looking at me, they have a slight smile on their face…and that girl. She's looking at me too. HUH!? She just winked at me. I just return a smile but that's kinda weird. No girl has ever even looked at me like that, except…

"So Jack, you never gave me your' last name. there a reason for that?" the way he asks, doesn't seem drilling. Like an officer should sound. He seems real friendly.

"Honestly, sir, I don't-"

"You can dispense with the formalities, Jack. Speak as freely as you'd like." Wow, he is so relaxed.

"Well, I just don't know what my last name is. All I know is that my parents were mercenaries, according to my family from Cradle 02, they're both dead." I tell him.

"Very interesting, Jack. Tell me, you don't actually buy that crap, do you?" he asks me.

"Sir?" I ask.

"you don't believe your parents are dead do you?" he asks. Does he know something?

"I think your parents are still alive somewhere. With how skilled you are, with not much prior training, your parents have to have been extremely skilled and passed that on to you." How can he say that?

"Sir, I was determined and I pursued what I wanted to do and got here today because of it. If my parents were good, sure I could have inherited skill from them but it's not the sole reason for my skill…is it?" I respond.

"Although you do have a point, how do you explain being among the best pilots of the WORLD at the age of sixteen?" Oh. He has a point…I never thought about that.

"Speechless. Just as I thought. Here's the truth Jack. I know who your father is." HE WHAT!?

"WHO! WHO IS MY DAD!?" I ask as I jump out of my seat.

"Calm down and sit down will ya?" Oh! I look like a fool right now.

"Yes sir" I say as I sit back down.

"Anyway, your father was a legendary mercenary. He stayed with Anatolia and never betrayed them or us even. No one ever knew his name, only his rank. In fact, he was known as 'the' Raven." The Raven…so my dad was a mercenary.

"Well in any case, I believe that's your sister and my daughter over there." He says as he points to Izzy and Alice. They're waving me over.

"Go and eat with them, Jack, that's all I wanted to talk about for now. I just thought you should know. Oh! And be sure to take a few days off to spend with your sister, if I'm not mistaken, you missed her birthday, right? Do something nice for her. I know, take her in the second seat of your Armored Core.

Give her a ride in it. That should do." he tells me.

"You're giving me clearance to launch an AC?" I ask.

"I just did. You have open clearance to launch at any time. Just make sure you contact the control tower when you do so" Oh, that answers my question.

"Thank you sir!" I say as I go over to Izzys' table.

"Hey Izzy! How are you and Alice getting along?" I ask her.

"Doin all right! I see you have an admirer." she says as she points behind me. Who is she talking about- AH! HER!? She's looking at me. Smiling. Resting her chin on her hands. She looks even prettier than before for some reason. Is this what its like when someone is attracted to another? Huh!? She's coming over!

With that look still on her face! I can see every detail of her face! She looks so beautiful! I've seen other girls look like this back on the Cradle, every time they look like this, it's always at a guy, and they all end up flirting or even becoming his girlfriend! Uh shit! I don't have any idea what to say! She's a pretty girl, coming over here and I don't know what to say! OH GOD! What do I do!?

"Jack? Why are you nervous all of a sudden?" Alice asks.

"Uh, this might sound pathetic but…I don't know what to do. No girl on this earth has ever looked at me the way she is, and I've never even had a girlfriend, or anything even related so I'm completely clueless on what to do!" I tell them as I lean over the table.

"Oh don't worry about it! Being a girl, I can walk you through this. I got your back!" She says as she winks.

"Ok, somehow I still don't think this is going to go over very well." I tell her.

"Hmph! well I could make a GREAT girlfriend for Jack!" Ugh, great! Now Alice is starting.

"What are you talking about!?" Izzy asks her.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. Just remember that I'm here if things don't go well between you and her." Man, she really likes older guys. She is cute, I'll give her that but I don't feel that kind of attraction towards her.

"Ok Jack, there's only a few things to remember when talking to girls: stay calm, don't act like a fool, and NEVER EVER say anything perverted!" She tells me.

"You know, its not like I don't know that last part." I tell her.

"Anyway, just remember that and you'll get through this. If things develop further I'll give you more pointers. Now we'll move to the other end of the table, give ya a bit of space." She says with a confident smile. Man I hope this doesn't end badly.

"Hi. Can I sit with you?" OH MAN! A PRETTY VOICE! IT HAS TO BE HER! IT IS! Inside my head I'm bouncing off the freakin walls, but outside I'm stiff as a board.

"Jack right?" She asked. COME ON JACK! OPEN YOUR MOUTH AND ANSWER HER QUESTION! "Yeah! That's right." I feel so nervous and my heart's racing!

"Are you ok?" She asks.

"Uhh yeah! I just uhh…" GOD I CANT THINK OF ANYTHING!

"Do you mind if I sit next to you?" NEXT TO ME!? Ok calm down! Obviously I'm not doing anything wrong yet.

"Uhh sure." I tell her.

"Thanks!" She says as she seats herself. She's so close! Her shoulder is right against mine! And her leg is just touching mine! Why is she so close when we have only first met?

"My name is Ayla Orthei. It's good to meet you. Although, this would actually be my second encounter with you." She says with a smile. WAIT WHAT!? COULD SHE BE!?

"Second encounter? You mean!? Aboard Cradle 02!?" WAS SHE THE ONE WHO I THOUGHT I'DE EVADED!? THE ONE WHO SAW ME AND IZZY OFF!?

"Yeah. You know, I heard that you were here since the day after our first encounter. I'm glad to hear that you've been doing all right." she tells me. It seems like she's been worrying about me since then. Why is she so interested in me?

"Hey I have a question…" I tell her.

"Hmm?" She responds.

"I noticed that you seem to be so fascinated with me, why?" I ask her.

"Well, for one you are the son of a legend. Of course I want to get to know you…" Being the son of a legend, I guess it makes sense.

"…You seem like a really nice and amazing person too. That's actually the more important thing to me. And I think you're really cute!" OH SHIT! THAT'S USUALLY FOLLOWED BY…! Looking at her face my heart is racing much faster! She's so beautiful! She has a look of desire! She wants to…kiss me!

OH GOD MY HEART'S POUNDING! I CAN FEEL IT AGAINST MY RIBS! THIS IS SOMETHING I'VE ONLY SEEN AND WANTED BUT NOW…I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO! I'VE NEVER DONE THIS! I DON'T KNOW HOW TO KISS! I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!

I MEAN ALL I'VE BEEN TRAINED TO DO MY LIFE IS FIGHT AND PROTECT IZZY! I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO ANYTHING ELSE! AH! SHE'S COMING IN CLOSER! I'M SHAKING! GOD I'M PATHETIC! I CAN FIGHT AGAINST OUTSTANDING ODDS BUT I CAN'T GET PASSED SOMETHING LIKE THIS WITHOUT FEELING LIKE MY HEART'S ABOUT TO EXPLODE!?

AH! WHAT'S THAT!? SHE'S WRAPPED HER ARMS AROUND ME!? GOD I FEEL TORN I DON'T KNOW WEATHER I LIKE THIS OR DREAD IT! IT'S GOOD THAT A GIRL IS DOING THIS BUT WHAT I DREAD IS THE POSSIBLE OUTCOME!

WHAT WILL SHE THINK WHEN SHE REALIZES I CANT KISS!? WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN WHEN I DO SOMETHING WRONG!? OH GOD! SHE'S HOLDING ME TIGHTER! AH! I CAN FEEL HER HEARTBEAT! IT'S…THIS FAST TOO!

IS THIS NORMAL!? I…I CAN'T…I CAN'T DO THIS…!

"I'M SORRY!" I say as I get up. She looks confused.

"I…I just…" I can't think of anything legitimate to say that won't make me look completely stupid.

"Jack? Are you ok?" She asks me.

"UH! No I'm, just, uhh…I have a headache, and I have a lot on my mind, which causes the headaches and I don't get sleep at night!" DAMN, I FEEL SO PATHETIC RIGHT NOW!

"Would you like me to walk you to your room?" AH! SHE STILL WANTS TO GET CLOSE TO ME!

"NO! I CAN MAKE IT BY MYSELF THANKS! SEE YA!" I say as I run out of the mess hall. GOD! WHY CAN'T I GET PASSED THE PARANOIA!? Well at least I can be in my room without worry now. I'm in my room with the door closed. Man! What the hell is wrong with me? **KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK**

"Hey Jack? You all right?" It's the captain!

"Uhh, YES SIR!" I respond.

"Would you mind if I come in?" he asks.

"It's open!" I wonder what he wants to talk about? Most likely what happened in the mess.

When he opens the door and walks in, I notice he looks more serious than normal.

"I saw what happened." AAAAAAHHH! SON OF A BITCH! HE'S GONNA GIVE ME AN EARFULL FOR WHAT HAPPENED!

"Knowing the kind of lifestyle you lived it's not surprising you panicked." HUH!? HE…UNDERSTANDS!?

"Tell me, what were the exact emotions you were feeling in that situation?" He wants to know what all I was feeling huh?

"…I was happy that someone felt affection for me but I also felt fear, anxiety, and confusion." I tell him.

"Why fear, I wonder?" he asks.

"I…have no experience and…for some reason I feel scared when I think about it. I don't know why." I tell him.

"Well, I know that it must be hard, just try to let Ayla in. She care's about you though." HUH!? She cares about me? Even though we just met? She wants to be so comforting?

"I talked with her after you left. I explained to her the kind of life you had. She understands a bit now. All she wants to do now is be there for you, and most importantly, be a friend of yours." A…friend…

"With the possibility of making something more, of course." He says with a smile. I guess I'm not used to someone being so friendly.

"Just try to let her close to you. Even if just a little. There's no rush, just remember that." he tells me.

"By the way, I noticed that since day one, you've been maintaining all your craft on your own. I happened to find a mechanic for you. She is very talented and devoted to what she does." She?

"Who did you assign me sir?" I ask him.

"Come on in." he says toward the door. Who is he talking to? WHAT!?

"AYLA…IS MY MECHANIC!?" I respond. OK, THIS WAS THE LAST THING I EXPECTED!

"That's right! I figured that it might be a good idea if you two work together. Don't worry she's good about keeping on task. This will be a great opportunity for the two of you to spend time together. It'll help you a lot Jack." He tells me.

"Jack I'm sorry about before, if I'd known earlier, I'd have taken it slower. Can you forgive me?" She asks me. I can't respond.

"Uh…I see. I really am sorry." She says.

"What are you apologizing for?" I ask her. She looks surprised.

"Of course I forgive you! I'm sorry for what I did to you. Anyway, Let's start over, a new slate. I would to be friends with you." I tell her.

"HAAAAAAH! OOOOOHHHHH JACK THANK YOU SO MUCH!!" AAAAAAAAHHHHHH! SHE'S TACKLE HUGGING ME! AH MY HEART'S RACING AGAIN!…but…now something feels different.

"OH I'M SO SORRY JACK! OOOHH JUST COULDN'T CONTROL MYSELF, I JUST GOT SO EXCITED! AHAHAHA!" She just jumped off of me as she said that. Holding her hands on her cheeks while saying that, she's so cute like that. I still feel everything I did when she held me the first time. But I swear something is different. What is it?

Oh well I'll figure it out. In any case, I think I might be able to make a great friendship with Ayla, I'll just have to turn her down on the girlfriend/boyfriend and romance stuff…for now.

* * *

End of chapter 2

* * *

Jack has completed Armored Core training on the Spirit of the Mother Will Class carrier Arms Fort: the Prominence, fought against an Arms Fort in a fighter jet and lived to tell the tail. And brought the captains' daughter aboard safely after many other pilots' failed. Jack has even got a new mechanic assigned to him. Although being uncomfortable with a relationship, he is willing to accept her as a friend, provided she doesn't smother him. He has everything needed to be a qualified mercenary, except the most important part, jobs. Will he get any jobs soon? And if he does get a job, who will he be up against? Find out in the next chapter of Armored Core the Uprising: ATTACK ON LINE ARK! See you next job!


	3. Chapter 3

Armored Core the Uprising

Chapter 3: ATTACK ON LINE ARK!

* * *

Carrier Arms Fort: Prominence airspace. (Jacks' perspective)

* * *

Here I am again. On another defense run. Everything seems dead. The desert is as quiet as ever, skies are clear, radar's blank, aside from Prominence.

Blue Blaze to Prominence, southern sector is clear." I tell them.

"Roger that Blue Blaze, continue your defense run in northern sector." I do like flying me jets in defense, but still. I could do so much more if I had the job offers from the companies. Hmm, nothing here either. Better report it.

"Blue Blaze, To Prominence, the skies of the northern sector are crystal clear. Nothing on my scopes and no visual." I tell them.

"Roger that, Blue Blaze. Continue to the western sector and report any findings." Ms. Haze tells me. GOD ALL MIGHTY! EVERYTHING'S TOO QUIET! UGH! I really wish there could be more action. I'm a mercenary now! I need stuff to do that brings in more money than basic defense and patrol sorties. At this rate, I'll never be able to pay off Izzy's schooling.

"Blue Blaze to Prominence, western sector is clear. Nothing on my scopes." I tell them.

"Roger that Blue Blaze, continue to the eastern sector. You're home free after that." Ms. Haze tells me. She's strict and uptight but I can tell she does care about me. Not in the same way that Ayla does, but if I'm not mistaken, she seems to act somewhat motherly to me. HUH!? My radar! It's picking up contacts. Twelve enemy planes incoming from the east!

"BLUE BLAZE TO PROMINENCE! CONTACTS INCOMING! I'M READING 12 ENEMY PLANES, INBOUND ON YOUR POSITION! ENGAGING!" I announce to them. Could they be the same squadron from before? The one that attacked the cradle? The one that followed me here?

"ROGER BLUE BLAZE! YOU'RE CLEAR TO ENGAGE!" Clearance received! Here we go!

"All Line Ark units, this is the moment we've been waiting for! We are going to take this so called Ace down! Break formation and engage!" Radio chatter from the enemy. It is the same squadron! Well I'm gonna teach them that planes don't decide the victor in battle! AFTERBURNERS!

"ARMING AMRAAMS!" TARGET LOCKED! They're coming at me head on! Four targets, good lock!

"AMRAAMS! FOX 3!" MISSILES AWAY! One, two, three, four! All locked targets hit! THEY PASSED OVER ME! BANK LEFT! BREAKS! PULL UP! I'm right behind them!

"ARMING BVRAAMS!" Locking onto the next four targets! GOOD LOCK!

"BVRAAMS! FOX 3!" MISSILES AWAY! Hits on one, two, three, FOUR MISSED! DAMN! They're taking evasive actions! Better stay on the lead plane!

"ARMING AIM-9X SIDEWINDERS!" These are my last two missiles! And five planes still flying! Better do what I can with these! Acquiring lock on the next plane! Good lock!

"SIDEWINDER! FOX 2!" MISSILE AWAY!…GOOD HIT! CONFIRMED KILL! Acquiring lock on the next plane! Good lock!

"SIDEWINDER! FOX 2!" MISSILE AWAY!…GOOD HIT! CONFIRMED KILL! Now to take on the other ones!

"All remaining Line Ark fighters, lets pull back! We're no match for him on our own!" They're retreating? Well I did just take out nine of their planes single handedly. Well they're out of my hair and I've done a successful defense run.

"Blue Blaze here, I'm not seeing any more enemy activity on radar. Negative on visual as well." I announce to the Prominence. I've finished Armored Core training but haven't even gotten any jobs, nothing. Just some grunts attacking us. Easy pickings if you ask me.

"Roger that Blue Blaze, your defense run is complete, RTB." Ms. Haze tells me. Oh man, I hope that they have something for me aside from my paycheck.

"**sigh** roger that, give me a landing vector…"

"GOD! HOW LONG DO I HAVE TO WAIT BEFORE I CAN GET AN ACTUAL JOB! ALL I'VE BEEN DOING IS BASIC DEFENSE! I CAN DO THAT USING A FIGHTER! OVERKILL USING AN ARMORED CORE!" I complain, but I cant get much money just flying defense!

"Don't worry Jack, you'll get something. I'm sure of it!" Ayla sure is confident. She's sitting on the cot in my room like a bench.

"But it's been over a month since I've completed my training! Every mercenary has jobs coming in after training! It's how it's always been! Why aren't there any for me!?" I just don't understand! There's so much going on that every mercenary is packed with jobs!

"Hey, come on Jack. Just relax a bit, loosen up, you don't have much to do right now, your defense shift is over, why don't we just sit and talk? Come on, sit with me will ya?" She asks me with a wink. Well, I guess complaining won't get me any jobs. I guess talking might be a good thing to do.

"Ok, what do you want to talk about?" I ask her as I go to sit by her.

"Well…I'd like to know what got you started flying. You're an AMAZING pilot, so I'm curious." That's something no one's ever asked me about.

"Actually what got me into flying was my family. I couldn't stand them so I tested for the qualifications on piloting. And surprisingly to everyone, I passed. Although I was the only pilot, with the exception of the Cradle pilots, I basically WAS the trade route between nearby Cradles. I also flew, as you know, combat planes for various missions. Some like protecting aerial battleship and late Cradle prototypes among other things. They've even sent me on bombing runs on rare occasions. My time in the air was halved by either flying to defend the Cradles, or flying the cargo route." I tell her.

"Wow, you've really been through a lot, huh?" She asks me.

"Yeah…I like flying but still, it gets stressing when you go up every day. Now I've been able to get some breaks from flying and I'm able to finally get some rest for once. Now I just need to work on actually getting some sleep." I continue.

"Oh, you can't sleep?" she asks.

"Yeah. Actually, I only get about two hours of sleep a night. Even on days I can sleep in." I tell her.

"Oh my god! That's terrible Jack! I'm surprised you're able to function at all!" She really does care about me.

"Heh, I'm not to worried about that actually. I've gotten used to it within the first year. I've been able to run fine with just that." I assure her.

"Are you sure? If you need sleep you should try to get some. You never know when you're gonna suddenly collapse from lack of sleep. If anything, it might be affecting you daily." She tells me as she puts her hand on my shoulder.

Odd, I don't feel my heart beating fast now, nothing. I guess it's because she's not acting all flirty, like last time.

"Hey, don't worry, I'll be fine. I'm still movin. I've been able to maintain my abilities at the top of my limit." I tell her.

"You're wrong." Huh? I look over at her in question. She has a face I haven't seen on her before. She looks concerned and kind of mad.

"You're not at the top of your limit, not even close! You have so much more that you can give! You may not know it, but everyone else does! Everyone else can see the potential you have! There is a gift you have that has yet to be realized. So don't say that you're at the top of your limit yet. You are good now but, you have the ability to be so much better!" She says as she gets closer.

I wonder…is it true? Do I have the capacity to do more? Is everything that I'm doing, just a taste of my true potential?

"In any case, you need to get more sleep." Man…you know, she's right.

"I know! How about we bunk together?" HUH!? I look at her with surprise and question.

"I bet you have nightmares and you just don't want to say it. It's ok, and if you do, then I can be there to comfort you. They say that the feeling of a woman's warmth is the most soothing for a man." I've never heard that, then again, I there's a lot of things I haven't heard about.

"I know how you feel about this sort of thing but I promise you I'm not trying to make you feel uncomfortable. That's the last thing I want." She says as she takes hold of my hand. She looks so worried. Like she could tear up at any moment. She really loves me. So this is what it feels like…to have someone actually…love you.

"Hey, Ayla?" I ask her.

"Yeah? What is it?" She asks.

"Thank you…" I tell her.

"Oooooo go Jack! Puttin on the moves! Be sure to ask her to be your girlfriend!" IZZY!? WHAT THE HELL!? SHE'S OVER THERE GIGGLING HER HEAD OFF!

"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT, IZZY! WE'RE JUST TALKING ABOUT SOME DEEP STUFF HERE!" I yell back. When the hell did this stuff start!?

"Yeah whatever, just don't forget to give her a big SMOOCH!" THERE SHE GOES GIGGLING AGAIN!

"I TOLD YOU IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!" I yell back as she runs off. Huh? Ayla's pulling my arm. To sit back down? She's blushing and smiling again.

"Tee hee, your sister is so funny. Hey, could…we try again?" WHAT!? She's looking at me like that again. I want to move but…I cant. Why cant I move? She's getting closer! I feel paralyzed! What is causing me to stay here!? It's not fear! What the HELL is it?

HER FACE IS INCHES FROM MINE! MY…EYELIDS FEEL HEAVY! MY HEART IS RACING! DO I WANT THIS THAT BADLY IN MY SUBCONCIOUS!? I FEEL ALL THE SAME EMOTIONS AND THOUGHTS AS LAST TIME BUT THIS TIME THERES ONE MORE THING!

I feel…warm…It…feels kind of exhilarating…What's going on!? Ayla's just about to kiss me! I feel even more than last time! It feels like my head's about to explode! Yet…I want this.

"…Ayla…" I say just as we're about to kiss. Our lips are less than an inch apart. Three seconds to contact, 3, 2, 1-

"JACK! WE HAVE GOOD NEWS! YOUR FIRST JOB OFFER IS HERE! REPORT TO THE BRIDGE IMMEDIATELY!" The captain just announced my job!?

"YEEEEEEEEESSSSSSS!" I yell as I jump up!

"ISN'T THIS GREAT AYLA!? I FINALLY HAVE MY FIRST MISSION!" This is great! I can't believe I'm finally being deployed to my first REAL assignment!

"MEET ME IN THE HANGAR! I'LL BE THERE IN LESS THAN THIRTY MINUTES!" I say as I run off. THIS IS GREAT! Huh? Did I just hear Ayla say 'Dammit!' just now? Oh well, I GOT MY FIRST ASSIGNMENT!…

"Ok Jack, sit down. We have a video briefing sent by the League HQ. Pay attention to their orders." He tells me.

"YES SIR!" I respond. The video starts with the League insignia followed by various visual aids along with vocal objectives…

"This is your mission. Eradicate the defensive units deployed in the Line Ark zone. As you know, Line Ark is the main base of the anti-establishment forces that oppose the Cradles. We have tried to negotiate peacefully with these revolutionaries, but they have refused our overtures and continue their violent attacks. This mission is a show of force to encourage the enemy to rejoin negotiations. We never like to resort to violence, but on this occasion, we have no choice. Line Arks main weapon, White Glint, is currently operating in another area. It will not become a risk in this operation. Note that this mission is a test run of your capabilities. We trust you will deliver a successful result." Briefing end.

"Ok, that's your briefing. Are you clear on the mission Jack?" The captain asks me.

"Yes sir. I am." I tell him.

"Good. I'll send your reply to the League. They'll be happy you've accepted." He tells me.

"Roger that sir. Anything else I need to hear?" I ask him.

"No, just head down to the hangar and prepare for launch." He tells me.

"YES SIR!" I say as I head out of the bridge…

Everything got so lively before I got here. It's like everyone knew about the job before I did. Ok, time to finish preparations.

"Beginning Armored Core NEXT system check! Be ready to open the hangar doors!" I announce to the control tower.

"Roger that Blue Blaze, hangar doors are on standby and launch teams are ready outside!" Ms. Haze tells me.

"Ejection systems, operational, weapon systems, active, flares, fully loaded, radar, online and active, boost, ready, quick boost, ready, over boost, ready, energy systems, fully charged, propulsion systems, charged and operational, weapon ammunition, fully loaded, altimeter, online, communications, online and active, Hydraulic system, online and operational, all joints are operating properly, tactical music, ready, system check complete, ALL SYSTEMS GO!" I'm ready! Time to launch!

"Roger that Blue Blaze! Opening the hangar doors! Proceed to runway 2-B!" She tells me.

"Roger, proceeding to runway 2-B!" I respond.

"Blue Blaze has reached runway 2-B, Blue Blaze, you are clear for launch! Over boost takeoff has been authorized!" She tells me.

"Blue Blaze, roger, firing over boost in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, FIRE!" Here we go! It's just like launching a fighter off an aircraft carrier! THIS IS AMAZING! Why didn't we launch like this for training I wonder? I guess we were pretty close to the carrier but still.

"BLUE BLAZE TO PROMINENCE CONTROL! I'M AIRBORN AND MOVING TO HEADING 250!" I tell them.

"Roger that Blue Blaze. Good luck out there!" Ms. Haze didn't have the tone she normally has. She sounded happy. Well, happier than her normal, strict and uptight self.

"Roger that Control! Heading out!" I respond…

* * *

Line Ark Airspace

* * *

"Commence Mission. Destroy all Line Ark defense units." Ms. Haze tells me.

"Yes ma'am!" I respond.

As I boost in the direction of the enemy, I hear radio chatter.

"A League NEXT? Dammit not now!" Some of the Line Ark MT units are worried. They're right to be. After all, MTs don't stand a chance against an Armored Core. Their armor is considerably lighter than an Armored Cores' and the weapons are basic.

NORMALs pose more of a threat but still not enough to worry. Let's boost around the pillar. 20 shot succession…I was able to kill 6 MTs. One still standing.

"Switch to sniper cannon, targeting seventh standing MT! FIRE!" The sniper cannon killed the target. Moving on to the next area. Ok still about a hundred feet above the platforms. Targeting next MT!

"FIRE!" Hit the target! Better land and ground myself before the next shot. On the platform! Ok, grounded and ready to fire! Acquiring lock…

"FIRE 1!" IT HIT THE TARGET! They're firing at me but their shots are too high. That's weird. WHOA! They were aiming at the structure above me! Heh, good thing I was just a bit behind! That could have done some damage! NEXT SHOT READY!

"FIRE 2!" IT HIT THE TARGET! Any targets I missed to the left? No! next shot ready!

"FIRE 3!" TARGET HIT! Ok moving on to the next area. That bridge above me looks like a good area. Boosting up!

"Switch to rifle. Ok continuous rifle shot succession!" one target down!

"Confirmed. Half the targets have been destroyed." Ms. Haze tells me. Two enemies down, three down…

"Damn, are we doing any damage!? Primal Armor!? First we have to break down that Primal Armor!" More radio chatter from the enemy. I've destroyed three more targets. Moving through the tunnel. Hmm, a larger group. That looks like a good opportunity to try out the Assault Armor!

MOVING IN! EVADING ENEMY FIRE BEST I CAN! A few hits, nothing to worry about. OK I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF THEM!

"ACTIVATE ASSAULT ARMOR!" My Primal Armor is shining with brilliant light! WHOA! THAT WAS A COOL EXPLOSION!

"Only a few targets remaining." Ms Haze tells me.

"OUR STANDARD WEAPONS ARE USELESS! WHERE ARE OUR NORMALS!?" More chatter coming from the enemy! Hmph they're getting desperate, it's a good thing White Glint isn't here this operation. Man I probably would've been dead now if it was. Now they're throwing the NORMALs at me.

There's two right in front of me and. Time to use my laser blade. SLASH! One down. SLASH! SECOND ONE DOWN! Two more NORMALs on the bridge across from here. Let's finish up. Boosting into the air! MISSILES! BREAK! Missiles hit! Huh!? Not much damage- Oh right. I'm so used to being in a fighter plane. Missiles aren't as much of a big deal anymore. More incoming!

"LAUNCHING FLARES!" Try and hit me with missiles now! Landing on the bridge. Ok I count three NORMALs now. Time to finish this! FORWARD BOOST! SLASH! TWO DOWN! JUMPING UP!

"SWITCH TO SNIPER CANNON!" More missiles incoming! DODGED 'EM!

"FIRE!" TARGET HIT! More missiles! DODGED!

"FIRE!" Target destroyed!

"We've confirmed all targets destroyed. Mission complete. Well done. Almost perfect. But don't get too high on yourself yet rookie. These enemies were nothing to write home about." Ms. Haze tells me. Huh! Right. Like I'm gonna write home, to that pathetic excuse for a family.

"Roger that control, Moving to heading 045, I'm comin home." I say as I change heading.

"WOW! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! I ACTUALLY GOT TO SEE HIM DURING HIS MISSION!" Is that Ayla?

"HEY WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN HERE THIS IS FOR MISSION OPERATORS AND HIGHER UPS ONLY! IF YOU WANT TO BE IN HERE, THEN YOU NEED THE CAPTAINS' APPROVAL!" Oh boy! She's getting a scolding from Ms. Haze.

"Oh don't be too hard on her Serene. After all, Jack is still only eighteen. He's going to need support, and Ayla here can give it to him from here." THAT'S THE CAPTAIN! Thanks old man. Ayla does support me pretty well. She can kind of over do it sometimes but I do appreciate her doing so.

DAMN! I really need to get over my paranoia soon. This isn't fair to her but until I can get over it, there's nothing I can do…

* * *

Prominence airspace

* * *

"This is Blue Blaze, approaching Carrier Arms Fort, Prominence, Spirit of Mother will class, requesting landing vector." I tell Ms. Haze.

"Roger that Blue Blaze, You are Clear to land in retrieval tunnel 2! Welcome home." She tells me.

"No place like it ma'am." I respond.

"Blue Blaze, coming in nicely, keep on that axis. That's it…Beautiful." She tells me. Contact to interior of tunnel in 3, 2, 1,

"Landing complete." I tell her.

"Roger that. Blue Blaze, standby for opening of hangar doors. Oh, the captain wants to see you in the mess hall." The captain wants to me? Hmm, maybe he wants to give me pointers? Ms. Haze did say I got almost perfect but still.

"Roger that control, standing by." I tell her. The doors are opening. Ok lets head inside…

I wonder what the captain wants to see me about? And why the mess hall of all places? Well here it is. As I walk in…

"CONGRADULATIONS JACK!" WHAT THE HELL!? EVERYONE IS HERE! Wha- A sign? 'Congratulations on a successful mission!' Wow, they really didn't have to do this!

"JACK! NICE WORK!" Ayla- OOF! She just tackle hugged me again!

"WOW! YOU WERE AWSOME OUT THERE WITH THE WAY YOU BLEW AWAY THOSE NORMALS AND MTS! OH YOUR SO COOL, YOU'RE JUST LIKE YOUR DAD, A FREAKIN GOOD PILOT!" DAMN! SHE'S REALLY AT IT WITH THE PRAISE!

Well I guess I cant blame her, she's been like this since I met her. Oh well, I guess I should just enjoy it. Although she's holding onto me so tight! It's hard to breath!

"Ayla, could you loosen up a bit? Kinda hard to breath here." I ask her.

"OH MY GOD I'M SO SORRY! I'M JUST SO EXCITED FOR YOU! I CAN'T HELP MYSELF!" Wow! She really is something. She let me go immediately.

"Good work out there Jack. Here, let me buy you a drink." A DRINK!?

"But sir, I'm under age for that." I tell him.

"You're here doing things that adults do, plus, I am the captain of this Arms Fort. I have the authority and I believe you've earned it." he tells me.

"Thank you sir. I very much appreciate it."

"You too Ayla. Come on, you're doing things that deserve it." Wow! Even one for her? MAN I LIKE THIS GUY!

"Ok, thank you sir!" Uh oh, she's enthusiastic about this

Wow the captain's trashed! This is hilarious! And so is Ayla! They're both completely hammered!

"HEY JACK! I JUST WANNA TELL YA, THAT YOU'RE AN AMAZING PILOT! NO ONE COULD EVER MATCH YOU OUT IN THE HEAT OF BATTLE! You really are a prodigy of the mercenaries, HIC!" Geez, his words are slurring! Oh! Here's Ayla.

"I think I drank too much! Oh Jack, why don't you come over here and- HIC, we share our drinks? And eeeeheheheh you could hold onto me in case I fall. HAHAAAA!" Wow! She's trashed! Although something tells me that she's somewhat pretending, just as an excuse for me to hold her or something.

It would probably be a good idea to do so, make sure she doesn't hurt herself.

"Ok, come here, I can't believe you actually got like this." I laughingly say as I grab a hold of her. I can't believe I actually managed to stay sober!

"Hey Jack, is that your hand on my boobs? You naughty boy! Eeeheheheee." OOPS! I DIDN'T MEAN TO…

"UHH SORRY! I DIDN'T NOTICE!" I tell her. Wait a minute, when she said that, she sounded more suggestive than anything else.

"Noooo it's fine. We should head back to my bunk after this!" Oh great.

"HEY JACK! CONGRATULATIONS! DO YOU LIKE THE PARTY WE HELPED SET UP FOR YOU?" It's Izzy and Alice!

"Hey guys! Thank you, I really appreciate this!" I tell them.

"Oooooo I see you two lovers are finally getting close!" GOD DAMN! WHY IS IZZY TRYING TO RUSH THIS!? "I'M TELLING YOU IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!" FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! WHY CAN'T I GET IT THROUGH HER HEAD!

"Oh come on! You're holding her in your arms. If you ask me, it looks really romantic!" COME ON IZZY!

"Oh come on Jack! Just admit you love me!" AYLA! Man this is getting hard.

"I'M JUST HOLDING HER TO MAKE SURE SHE DOSEN'T FALL OVER!" I tell Izzy.

"Hey Jack, give me a big kiss will ya?" AYLA'S TRYING AGAIN! I'M NOT READY!

"Ayla you're drunk it's not right!" I tell her.

"Oh it's fine!" SHE'S STILL TRYING!…

Man…Ayla sure wore herself out, asked me to carry her back to her room and fell asleep right in my arms. You know, I like being able to hold her like this. She's quiet, but what gets me the most right now…She looks like an angel while she's asleep.

Here's her room. I think I'll stay here a bit. Opening her door. As I lay her on her bed, I notice that her eyes are open a bit. She looks up and smiles at me, and I do the same.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" I ask her.

"Tired. Did you carry me all the way here, and put me in bed?" She asks.

"Yeah, you don't remember asking me to carry you back?" I ask.

"No, I guess I fell asleep right after." She says. It makes sense.

"You really had a great time, I never thought you'd drink like that. I just hope you don't make a habit of it." I laughingly tell her.

"No, I would only do something like this on special occasions." She tells me.

"…Occasions as special as meeting you." …no one's ever cared about me like her. I return a smile. But I need to ask her…

"What is it exactly that you see in me again? I'm not really all that special. I mean, sure I'm a good pilot but I don't have any knowledge or experience with love or relationships, all I know how to do, really, is fight. Am I really the right person you want to fall for?" I ask her. She looks surprised and sits up. **SMACK!** She slapped me! What the hell!?

"WHAT THE HELL KIND OF TALK IS THAT!?" She's pissed! Maybe I didn't use the best words.

"But it's tr-" **SMACK!** SHE SLAPPED ME AGAIN!

"YOU'RE WRONG JACK! YOU'RE SO WRONG! You're special to me! Don't talk like that about yourself! I'm aware that your family didn't treat you the way they should've, but that's no excuse for the way you've been thinking! You've been out of that life for over two years now! It's ok to think better of yourself! Everyone on this carrier talks so highly of you, how much you can bring the world! All the potential you have!" SHE'S TEARING UP! SHE LOOKS LIKE SHE'S GOING TO CRY! SHE EVEN SOUNDS LIKE IT!

"Please Jack! Quit talking down about yourself! Quit excluding the care for yourself! I'm glad you care about everyone else but do things for YOU once in a while! Make an effort to make YOURSELF happy!" Have I really been like that? Oh man.

"THAT EXPLAINS WHY YOU HAVENT BEEN GETTING ENOUGH SLEEP! Please Jack…please…if you can't make yourself happy…" What is it?

"…then let me."…how could I have done this? I caused her to get upset and I was ignorant.

"Ayla…I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be so-" AH! SHE'S KISSING ME! MY WHOLE BODY JUST GOT TO HOW I GET WHEN SHE GETS CLOSE LIKE THIS ALL OF A SUDDEN! But…my eyelids feel so heavy! I'm not ready for this but…I can't…she's pulling away.

"See? It isn't that bad, right? Please…let me do this for you." I wasn't ready. It was startling and nerve racking, But, it was…nice at the same time…but I…

"I'm so sorry Ayla. I didn't know…And…please don't kiss me like that until I'm ready for a relation." Geez! I said it kind of shaky. SHE NOTICED! She's…not mad or upset in the face at all. It's like she can see right through me.

"Ok, I won't until your ready." Oh boy! She can see right through me.

"But at least let me hold you." She's getting closer. But I'm not nervous like before. She wrapped her arms around me and is resting her head on my chest.

"I wish we could do more, and at the same time, you be more comfortable about it. But…I'm happy just like this, and as long as you are too." As much as I want to have this kind of relation with her, I'm just not ready. It feels like it's going to be too safe. Safe to the point to where I could be caught with my guard down.

I return a smile and wrap my arms around her too. She's feeling upset so I should help her to feel better. I take a hold of her in my arms. She looks surprised.

"I can do things like this for now. Just, not in public…not yet. I just need time." I tell her.

"Are you serious?" She asks me.

"…yeah…" I tell her as I hold her close to me. Maybe I'll be able to be more comfortable with her sooner than I thought. Maybe…I can…I look Ayla in the eyes and start to move closer. And she starts the same. Our eyes are closed. Three seconds to contact. 3, 2, 1-

"JAAAAACK!" ALICE JUST BURST THROUGH THE DOOR! Ayla and I quickly move back just as Alice bursts in!

"HEY JACK! WHAT WERE YOU AND HER DOING!?" Oh shit! CAUGHT!

"Uhh! It wasn't anything!" I tell her.

"YOU LIAR! YOU WERE ABOUT TO KISS HER! IF YOU'RE GOING TO KISS ANYONE, PLEASE LET IT BE ME!" SHE'S PUCKERING! DAMMIT! Oh boy! She's coming in closer!

"No no no no no! Alice, I don't feel that way toward you! ALICE! STOP!" SHE'S STILL COMING!

"BUT ALL I WANT IS YOU!" SHE'S GRABBED A HOLD OF ME! HER ARMS ARE AROUND MY WAIST! DAMMIT!

"ALICE, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!? JACK IS MINE!" AYLA!? Oh boy she's trying to pull me in one direction! Uh oh! Alice is pulling me in the othER! HOLY GOD SHE'S STRONG!

"COME ON YOU TWO ARE STREATCHING ME OUT!" I tell them. WHOA! Ayla just ripped me from Alice' grip! She's wrapping her arms around me again and…missed my lips!

* * *

End of chapter 3.

* * *

Jack has finally started getting job offers, succeeded in his first mission, and even started to open up to Ayla a LOT! The fighter squadron of Line Ark just doesn't give up, and now Jack has a new job offer to attack a docked fleet while it's still re-supplying. But there's something a bit familiar to jack waiting for him at the naval port of Mimir. What is it? And how will He deal with it? Find out in the next chapter of Armored Core the Uprising: ATTACK ON THE NAVAL PORT OF MIMIR! See you next Job!


	4. Chapter 4

Armored Core the Uprising

Chapter 4: ATTACK ON NAVAL PORT OF MIMIR

* * *

Carrier Arms Fort: Prominence. (Aylas' perspective)

* * *

"Jack…we've been out here for a while, working together, and I was wondering if we could take things to the next step?" I ask him.

"Of course Ayla, I was hoping you'd ask." He said yes! Oh this is so good!

"Oh but you still feel not ready you don't have to do this for me!" I tell him.

"I'm over it. And I want to be with you, forever." he says as he takes a hold of me. He's wrapped my arms around me! I can feel his heartbeat! He's so romantic! Oh Jack.

"Jack…" I look into his eyes, those beautiful eyes.

"Ayla…" He sounds so dreamy! I can feel his hand rubbing my back. We're about to kiss! Finally! We can kiss without him feeling uncomfortable! OUR LIPS HAVE MET! His lips are sooo warm. I can feel his breath, so warm. My heart is pounding. I feel so alive right now! He's holding onto the back of my head! We are holding each other so tightly!…Huh?

Where did he-

* * *

"Ah DAMMIT!" Well, at least it was a nice dream. I can still feel Jack in the back of my head…what time is it? Hmm…the clock says it's about 6:00. Well, I'd better get up and ready. Jack's got another defense run today, unless he gets another job offer.

I want to go with him in that AC of his! I know it's safer for me here than out there but still. I want to be with him. I want to see the way he pilots that machine. I just think of him in there, alone on his missions, I know he's not out there that long but still…I just want to be with him.

You know what? I'm going to go with him next time he deploys on a mission. Well, time to get dressed and down to the hangar…

My name is Ayla Orthei. I work as Jack's mechanic now, but soon we will be more than just friends, we will be in a special relationship, holding each other when things get tough, I'll take care of any wounds he gets, we'll finally be able to kiss, and eventually sleep in the same bunk.

**sigh** but I guess that'll have to wait. Right now I'm on my way to the hangar. I bet Jack is already there getting ready to launch his fighter. Probably eating a bowl of ramen, he always has that before taking off. The halls are kind of lively. I wonder what's going on?

"Morning!" I tell to the nearby crewmembers. They nod back and get back to what they're doing. All I've been able to think about lately is that kiss I gave Jack after his last mission. He seemed to be able to do more than before from that kiss. But I don't want to force him to do anything.

I should go and apologize. I shouldn't have done that. But he makes me so frustrated when he thinks low of himself! GRRRR! WHY CAN'T HE JUST SEE HOW AMAZING HE IS?! HOW SPECIAL HE IS!?…He has abilities that surpass so many people. I bet they're even superior to the old Ravens'.

He really needs to open his eyes and see what a great and special man he is. He deserves more than what he has now. He deserves more than the lifestyle he grew up with. He needs a family, a good caring family. And I think that Izzy, Alice and I can all be a good start…

I've just entered the hangar. There's no sign of Jack in here. Lets see if he's in that AC.

"HEY JACK! YOU UP THERE?" I ask looking up at the open Armored Core. He's probably configuring his OS to his liking. He always works on that.

"I'M OVER HERE AYLA." Hmm? That came from the other direction. Oh! Right! He's in his fighter this time. As I walk over to the fighters I notice that he's in his best one. The X-02. I remember watching him launch that off the Cradle. That was something else!

"Hey! Hi ya feelin this morning?" I ask him.

"I'm all right. Just going over all the systems on the fighter. You?" He asks.

"Oh, fine as usual. Hey I wanted to say sorry for yesterday." I tell him.

"What do you mean?" He's actually asking? How does he not know what I'm talking about?

"The kiss I forced on you last week. I shouldn't have done that." I tell him.

"Hey! The past is the past. Don't worry about it. To tell you the truth, I actually feel…I don't know..." What is he getting at?

"I feel…like something's right…for the first time in my life." He sounds…happier…

"Hey, could you give me a hand here?" He asks.

"Sure, what do you need?" I ask.

"Check the port wing, will you? My onboard computer is telling me that the flaps are loose." He tells me.

"On it." I go over to the port side wing and begin inspection…OH MY GOD! How is the plane still holding itself together!?

"JACK!" I yell to him.

"WHAT!? DID YOU FIND SOMETHING WRONG!?" He asks me with worry.

"HOW IS YOUR PLANE STILL IN ONE PIECE?! THE WAY YOU'VE MANAGED IT SO FAR, IT'S BOUND TO FALL APART!" I tell him.

"WHAT!?" He responds.

"Here, let me give an overhaul on the plane. I'll have it back to tip top shape in no time!" I tell him.

"Ok, but Ayla, I think you should know that it won't be as simple as you make it sound-" He's surprised. I just got finished! Here I am sitting on the nose, swinging my wrench on my finger. I am so badass with mechanics.

"…Ayla…my onboard computer is showing 100% status…how did you…?" He asks.

"The captain told you, I'm that good at my job." I tell him. He gets up out of the cockpit seat and looks around the X-02.

"You like the little finish I did?" I ask him.

"WHA- Ayla…this is amazing!" He says.

"Your systems don't need checking now. I already did that." I tell him.

"You're ready to launch." I tell him.

"Thanks, now I have some free time before I have to takeoff." Oh! Free time means time he can spend with me. I jump down from the nose of the jet.

"Well, do you want to get breakfast? Although I bet you already had some ramen." I ask.

"Actually I didn't have breakfast this morning, lets head to the mess hall and get a bite to eat." He tells me. This is great!

"OK! Lets go then!" I'm excited! We finally get to eat together and talk a while. I grab a hold of his hand. He looks a little worried but it's not as bad as before. I reassure him with a smile. AH! He's also holding onto my hand!

As we walk to the mess hall hand in hand, everyone looks at us with a smile…

We just got our food and sat at our table. The mess hall's packed.

"So when do you think you'll get another job offer?" I ask him.

"I was actually thinking about that. I'm not sure but I hope I don't have to wait another month." He tells me. I hope another one comes soon too.

"Also, the last time I was in the AC, I noticed that the handling was a bit out of whack. It seemed like some of the joints of the AC weren't responding. I'm going to have to figure it out before I launch it next." He tells me. Hmm. If I could see the inside of that Armored Core of his, I could probably figure it out. That will also give me the chance to get inside when he launches.

"Hey Jack?" I ask.

"Hmm?" he responds.

"Do you think you might be able to show me how you pilot that AC?" I ask him.

"What do you mean?" he asks.

"If I could ride with you during a training session, I could get a really good view of how you do things out there. I might want to try piloting one myself eventually." I tell him.

"It's not that simple, besides, Ms. Haze could use your help when I'm out there on operations." He tells me. I WILL get in there, one way or another!

"Ok, I guess you're right." I tell him.

"So what got you into-" AN ALARM'S GOING OFF! IT'S THE AIR RAID SIREN!

"JACK! SCRAMBLE! WE HAVE ENEMY CONTACTS INBOUND! REPEAT ENEMY CONTACTS INBOUND! LAUNCH IMMEDIATELY!" OH CRAP! THAT'S NOT GOOD!

"AYLA! WE NEED TO GET TO THE HANGAR NOW!" He tells me.

"ROGER THAT! LET'S GET TO IT HUN!" I tell him with a wink. He returned a bit of a smile. As we run through the halls of the Prominence, the alarms and red warning lights are going off, all the crew members are running to their areas, some running into each other. The captain continues yell commands and warnings through the speaker system…

"Ayla! Have my Armored Core ready to launch! Just in case my fighter isn't enough!" He tells me.

"Don't worry babe! She'll be ready for anything by the time I'm done with her!" I tell him.

"Alright! And make sure that you don't get yourself hurt!" he tells me as he starts taxiing his fighter.

"AND MAKE SURE IZZY AND ALICE ARE ALRIGHT TOO!" He yells to me. Don't worry Jack. I'll make sure. His fighter is taking off now. I need to get Alice and Izzy here! There should be a COM link somewhere around here. OH! On the wall by the AC! Opening COM channel…

"ALICE, IZZY! GET DOWN TO THE HANGAR NOW! I NEED YOUR HELP DOWN HERE!" I tell them.

"WHAT IS IT AYLA!?" Izzy asks me.

"DID SOMETHING HAPPEN TO JACK!?" Alice asks me.

"NOTHING HAPPENED TO JACK! HE'S ALREADY IN THE AIR DEFENDING US! I NEED YOU DOWN HERE TO HELP ME GET HIS ARMORED CORE READY! I CAN DO IT BUT I CAN GET THE JOB DONE FASTER IF I HAVE MORE HANDS TO HELP! YOUR SOLDIERS NOW GIRLS! LET'S MAKE JACK PROUD!" I tell them.

"YES MA'AM!" They say as they salute. I begin working on the AC at some of the joints Jack mentioned earlier. Oh! The girls got here fast. I just jumped down from the foot to meet them.

"Alright girls! Jack's out there doing possibly the hardest job of any of us! But we can still do our best to make sure that Jack survives his job! So we can NOT screw up! IZZY! You care about Jack?" I ask her.

"OF COURSE I DO!" She tells me.

"ALICE! Do you!" I ask her!

"WHAT KIND OF QUESTION IS THAT!? I LOVE JACK WITH MY LIFE!" I'm going to ignore the specifics of that answer.

"THEN LET'S DO OUR BEST TO MAKE SURE THAT HIS ECQUIPMENT WON'T FAIL ON HIM! LET'S GET TO WORK GIRLS!" I tell them. I feel good right now.

"YEAH!" they respond as we start towards the Armored Core. As I tell them what to do, they learn very quickly. Within about fifteen minutes, we get the first leg done. In another fifteen, we got the other one! And within thirty minutes after that, we finished the torso piece. And within another thirty minutes after, the arms. And finally, we finished the headpiece in about five minutes. Jobs done!

"GOOD JOB GIRLS! THE ARMORED CORE'S IN THE BEST SHAPE OF HER LIFE THANKS TO YOU!" I yell to them from the top.

"ALRIGHT!" they respond.

"OK GIRLS! LET'S TAKE CARE OF THE JETS!" I tell them…

Huh, the alarms have silenced. Only a few minutes after we started working on the jets.

"CLEAR ALL INNER HANGAR LANDING SPACES INSIDE OF RUNWAY 2-B! BLUE BLAZE INBOUND!" The control tower orders through the speaker system.

"HEY IZZY, ALICE, WANNA SEE JACK LAND?" I ask from across the hangar.

"WE'RE COMING!" They say as they come running. We all go to the window of the hangar to see Jack make his approach.

"He should be coming any second. You should know the plane he's using Izzy. It's the same one he used to get you and him off the cradle." I tell her.

"Oh I think I see it now." She says as she points to a small dot in the distance.

"YEAH! THERE HE IS!" Alice yells out.

"OH JACK IS COMING BACK HOME AGAIN! BACK TO HIS LOVE!" I look at Alice with a cocked eyebrow.

"WHAT!?" She asks.

"Oh nothing, just the fact that he's more into me." I tell her.

"OH RIGHT! CAUSE HE'LL TAKE YOU ANYDAY!" She's going to be a pain.

"Oh he's about to land!" I say to them. Jack will be on the runway in about three seconds…touchdown! Man, I want to say that for real. He's on the elevator now…

He's real good at this. Oh! I'm too excited! I've gotta run to him!

"HEY JACK! GLAD TO SEE YOU'RE ALL RIGHT!" I yell to him while we run to him.

"MAN! I TELL YOU WHAT, IF YOU DIDN'T DO YOUR OVERHAULL ON MY PLANE BEFORE I LAUNCHED, I PROBABLY WOULD HAVE BEEN SHOT DOWN!" He yells to us as he climbs down from the cockpit of his X-02. He gets to the ground and starts walking in our direction.

"I'M GLAD TO SEE YOU'RE BACK AND IN ONE PIECE!" I yell to him as I jump in his arms.

"AYLA! MOVE! MOVE!" AAHHH! Wow! Alice is strong! She threw me off of Jack! Grrrrr! Now she's in his arms! NO ONE STEALS MY MAN FROM ME!

"HEY! ALICE! YOU CAN'T JUST THROW PEOPLE! WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA ANYWAY!? I TOLD YOU THAT JACK IS MORE INTO ME!" I yell to her. EHH!??! SHE STUCK HER TOUNG OUT AT ME!? OOOO THAT LITTLE BRAT!

"Hey Alice! Come on now, both of you, I do appreciate your feelings for me, but, I'm just not ready for a relationship yet." Jack, how can you not be ready for one?

"Hey Ayla? Could you come here?" he asks me.

"YES MY DARLING?" I ask as I walk over to him. He looks amused.

"I just wanted to say thanks. You are a really big help to me. You and Izzy and Alice. I mean there's my X-02 which you put in TOP shape in a matter of minutes. And look at my NEXT! I'm going to be ready for my next job with that. And most importantly, all three of you, aside from you and Alice fighting each other over me, you guys really support me. So thanks." He says.

Oh god he's so compassionate. I love that about him. OH WHO THE HELL AM I KIDDING!? I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT HIM!

"Well, we're your family, why wouldn't we do all this for you?" he looks surprised…

"Jack? Are you all right?" I ask him.

"Yeah…it's just, I never thought of our relation that way…family…" He looks worried.

"Are you thinking about your family on the Cradle?" I ask him.

"Yeah… all of a sudden, I cant help thinking that I've abandoned them, even though at the same time I feel that it was the right thing to do. I don't understand." He tells us. This has to be hard for him.

"Hey, you're here now, and they're fine. They can take care of their selves. And you have a means of defending them. You'll know when a Cradle is under attack, and you can go and help them. No worries. You didn't abandon them." I tell him.

"Yeah, I guess your right. Now, I have something I want to ask-"

"JACK, REPORT TO THE BRIDGE! WE HAVE ANOTHER JOB FOR YOU!" ANOTHER JOB!? OH! This might be my chance to finally ride with him.

"ALL RIGHT! AYLA I'LL BE HERE RIGHT AFTER THE BRIEFING! I'LL SEE YOU THEN!" He tells me.

"Ok Jack! I'll be double checking and making sure that your AC is ready to launch when you get here." I tell him. I guess I won't be able to join him in briefings yet. Disappointing, but I guess some things I just have to give up. He sure gets excited when he's presented with a job.

"Hey girls, you both did great today. Here, you've earned some money for your hard work." I tell them as I hand them about a fifty dollars each. Good thing we get paid well here.

"Thanks Ayla!" They tell me.

"Hey don't thank me, you earned it. Go buy yourselves something nice or you can do something for jack if you want." I tell them.

"OK! WE'LL SEE YA LATER!" They say as they run off. They're fourteen but they still act younger than it. Anyway, I'd better make sure things are comfortable inside Jacks' cockpit for his mission…and be ready to go myself. He wears a flight suit like the one he uses in his jet. I'm gonna need to get one…hmm, there's one already in his Armored Core…I wonder…

Ok I've gone through the pilot lockers and got the flight suit, helmet, G-suit, and breathing mask. I'm ready. Now I just have to wait in the second seat of the Armored Core. I'll surprise him after we launch. Oh here he comes now. Better make sure he doesn't see me! I'm climbing up into the cockpit Jack still doesn't see me. I'm in the back, crouched down and hidden. Ok, I don't think he'll see me like this.

"HEY JACK! MAKE SURE THAT YOU COME BACK AGAIN!" A hangar team member yells.

"YEAH NO PROBLEM! I'LL BE BACK! Got a few people here that'd be heartbroken if I didn't." He cares so much! I knew he was the one for me. Jack just got into the cockpit and closed the canopy.

"This is Blue Blaze! Ready for Launch, Control!" He says into the radio.

"Blue Blaze, you're not going to do a system check?" They respond.

"Don't need to, my mechanic made sure everything is in tip top shape! In fact, I don't think I'll need to do any system checks until I take a sufficient amount of damage!" He jokes, but he might be right.

"Ok Blue Blaze, proceed to runway 1-A." They tell him. Come to think of it, it sounds like Ms. Haze over the radio. I know she taught Jack everything he knows about piloting an Armored Core but I didn't think she was his field operator too.

"Roger that, proceeding to runway 1-A." He tells them. As he walks his Armored Core I can see the outside of the Prominence. I never got the chance before to get a look at her from outside and from this close. SHE'S HUGE! The Armored Core is a little rough when walking, but tolerable.

They say that when using one, the pilot tends to use the boost systems constantly. Oh! We've reached the runway!

"Blue Blaze to Prominence control, runway 1-A reached, ready to launch!" He tells them. He looks like he's using fighter jet controls.

"Roger that Blue Blaze, you are clear to launch, over boost takeoff has been approved." They tell him. Over boost takeoff? Is that how Jack launched last time?

"Roger that Control! Engaging over boost in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, FIRE!" He activated the over boost. Here's my time to surprise him. I sit forward and…

"HIYA HUN!" He looks so dumbfounded!

"AYLA!?" He asks.

"I thought I'd join you for this missi- AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!" THE OVER BOOST JUST CAUGHT ME BY SURPRISE AND THREW ME IN THE BACK SEAT!

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE AYLA!?" He asks me. IT TAKES EVERYTHING I HAVE TO PRY MYSELF FROM THE BACK SEAT! UGH! Ok, now I'm holding onto the back of his seat.

"Oh come on! It's just one mission. Besides if something happens out there making it so you can't come back, you would be alone, you don't want that do you?" I ask him. I might end up getting in trouble later but I don't care right now.

"Well yeah I would be alone, but I wouldn't want to drag you out into the battlefield just for that." He says. He does have a point.

"But still, Jack, I never got to ride in one of these before. And I can be a help to you." I tell him.

"How? I can see my radar fine enough on my own, Ms. Haze keeps an eye on my hull integrity, and I can see everything good enough." He tells me.

"What if you overlook something? And don't tell me that you're trained not to, there's still possibility of it." I tell him.

"Ok, you can be my second pair of eyes for this mission. But do me a favor from now on…" Huh?

"What is it?" I ask.

"Ask from now on. Ok?" HELL YEAH!

"You got it babe! So what's the mission?" I ask him.

"AYLA IS THAT YOU!?" Oh boy, just as I thought. Here comes judgment from Ms. Serene Haze.

"Yeah it's me." I tell her.

"JACK BRING HER BACK TO THE PROMINENCE IMMEDIATELY!" Oh damn! I didn't think that would happen.

"Sorry Ms. Haze. I can't do that." Huh? He's disobeying orders?

"What are you talking about Jack? You can't go on your mission with her in the back like that!" Ms. Haze tells him.

"Ma'am, if I go back to drop her off now, I won't have time to do the job." He tells her. Smart boy!

"…Fine. But Ayla! If you want to go on missions like this, then you need to train for combat and possibly train to pilot an AC!" She is willing to train me in that.

"REALLY!?" We both ask in surprise. This is so cool!

"Don't get excited Ayla! It's hard work!" She tells me.

"LIKE I'M NOT USED TO HARD WORK! I CAN DO IT! YOU TRAIN ME AND I'LL BE A GOOD PILOT BY THE TIME YOU'RE DONE WITH ME!" I yell to her.

"Ok, but remember, you asked for it." She tells me…

We've just made it to the combat area. There's a large canyon with a lot of ships.

"So what exactly are we doing this mission?" I ask him.

"I'm here to destroy as many of the targets as I can within this zone. The targets are Naval ships and a possible an Arms Fort. They said that if I do find one I won't have to worry, seeing as it'll be inactive." He tells me.

"The problem is, I'll have about five minutes to destroy everything by the time we reach the combat zone." Five minutes eh?

"So it's mission Failure if you don't destroy everything in that time?" I ask.

"Not necessarily, this is a job where I'm paid by how many targets I destroy, and I get a special bonus for destroying the Arms Fort, assuming there really is one." He tells me.

"This mission sounds easy! We just have to BLOW UP everything right? No problem." I tell him. It shouldn't be a problem.

"That's exactly what I'm thinking." He says with a smile.

* * *

Naval port Mimir

* * *

"Commence mission. Destroy all enemies inside the combat zone. Time is limited. Move quickly." Ms. Haze tells us.

"Roger that! BLUE BLAZE BEGINNING ATTACK!" Jack sounds excited! Time to get to work!

"Ok, scanning the four enemy ships in front of us…locking onto the battleship…beginning twelve shot succession on the battleship now! Fire!" He says as he fires the rifle. All of the twelve shots hit and destroy the battleship.

"Acquiring lock on the enemy carrier…target locked, beginning seven shot succession. Fire!" He says as he fires the rifle again. The carrier is destroyed. He really seems to be enjoying this.

"Acquiring lock on first destroyer…locked on, beginning seven shot succession! Fire!" He fires the rifle again. All shots hit and destroy the ship.

"Nice work hun!" I tell him.

"Thanks, now, acquiring lock on second destroyer…target locked, beginning another succession! Fire!" He fires the rifle. 1, 2, 3- he used the laser blade!

"Enemy NORMAL inbound! Firing succession!" He fires the rifle, hitting the target with every shot.

"EAT THIS!" HE USED THE LASER BLADE AGAIN!

"ALRIGHT! NICE GOING!" I tell him.

"Yeah but we're not done yet!" he says as he enters the next area. WHOA! There's a lot of ships here!

"YOU HAVE TO TAKE OUT ALL THESE!?" I ask.

"Actually, it's gonna be simple! Watch!" he tells me. We're moving in towards the carrier in the area!

"Seven shot succession, FIRE!" As he fires he continues to boost in that direction! Whoa! He just killed that destroyer with the laser blade as he finished off the carrier!

"AWSOME!" I say.

"Just keep watching!" he says. He sounds so cool, so calm! WOW! ANOTHER BLADE KILL! AND ANOTHER! AND ANOTHER! FOUR KILLS NOW BY BLADE!

"How long have you trained in one of these?" I ask him.

"About two years." ABOUT TWO YEARS!? THIS IS AMAZING! He's moving again! He's going to that huge battleship!? We're on top of it! What is he doing? We're in the open and right in front of its guns!

"ACTIVATE ASSAULT ARMOR!" He yells as- wait the primal armor! AH! IT'S SO BRIGHT! Huh? All the ships around us are…completely destroyed?

"This area looks clear. Head elsewhere. Time is of the essence." Ms. Haze tells us.

"Alright! Hold on Ayla! We're going high speed! ACTIVATING OVER BOOST!" Jack tells me. I immediately brace myself in the rear seat of the cockpit! UGH! That over boost has quite the kick!

"Acquired lock on enemy sub! FIRE!" He fires two shots from the rifle. The sub is destroyed! As he continues forward, not even stopping, and fires more shots at the subs docked about a hundred meters in front of us. They're destroyed!

"Enemy NORMAL! Thinks he can stand against an AC huh? Don't be ridicules!" He says. He sounds confident. But then again, they pretty much are small fry. He uses the laser blade again! ONE HIT KILL!

"Three minutes remaining." Ms. Haze tells us. Another sub!

"These targets are just sitting out in the open. It's kind of odd." He tells me. But, then again…

"Well, they ARE re-supplying." I tell him.

"Yeah I guess." He says. We're continuing to the next area.

"Well this looks fun! Two subs and three tankers! The mix for some big explosions!" He says with a smile on his face. We're going in!

"Locked on to sub! FIRE!" He says as he destroys the sub.

"Wanna see something cool?" he asks me.

"You mean the tankers?" I ask.

"Up close!" WHAT!?

"HUH!?" I respond.

"HERE WE GO! LOCKED ON THE FIRST TANKER! SLASH!" HE'S USING THE LASER BLADE ON THAT!? THE BLADE JUST SLASHED THE TANKER! AH!

"WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF AN EXPLOSION! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" I yell at him.

"Don't worry! An Armored Core can take the heat. We're still alive aren't we?" He says.

"Right!" I respond.

"Lets finish up!" He says. He goes to attack the sub! DESTROYED! It looks like the other two tankers were destroyed by the first ones' explosion. That was a rush! He attacks two more docked tankers. DESTROYED! WHAT WAS THAT!? ONE OF THE DESTROYERS WAS BLOWN AWAY! BUT…not by Jacks' gunfire!

"JACK! DID YOU SEE THAT!?" I yell to him.

"YEAH I DID! KEEP YPUR EYES OPEN FOR ANY OTHE COMPANY!" He tells me as he destroys the next destroyer and docked sub group! Another tanker lit up along with the two vessels right by it! Not bad Jack! ANOTHER EXPLOSION IN THE NEXT SUB HANGAR!

"ANOTHER EXPLOSION!" I yell to him!

"GOT AN EYE ON WHAT DID IT!?" He asks me.

"I think I can shed some light in your confusion!" A voice over the radio! Who is that!? Sounds like a girl…about my age!

"UNKNOWN UNIT IN OPERATION AREA, IDENTIFY YOURSELF AND STATE YOUR BUISNESS HERE!" He instructs.

"My name is Katrina Hurley! I'm a merc for Global Armaments! I'm here on a job! Who are you and what are you doing here I wonder?" She asks.

"Call me Blue Blaze! I'm also here on a job from GA! They never told me about anyone else joining this one!" He tells her.

"Well, I'm here now, and you might need some help against the Arms Fort in there!" An Arms Fort? She knows it's here?

"Two minutes remaining." Ms. Haze tells us.

"Well Ms. Hurley, what do you say we work together and destroy the remaining forces? Split the cash?" Jack asks her.

"Ok, I like you, boy! Wish I could see your face right now!" WHAT!? She's flirting with Jack!?

"HEY! LISTEN TO ME MISS HURLEY! JACK IS MINE AND YOU CANT HAVE HIM SO STEP OFF!" I yell to her, reaching over the front seat.

"Oh? I didn't realize you had a back seat driver with you Blue Blaze. Or Jack is it? Let me know if you want some REAL company." WHAT!? WHO DOES THAT GIRL THINK SHE IS!?

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A 'BACKSEAT DRIVER'!? AND THE COMPANY I GIVE HIM IS JUST FINE THANK YOU!" OOOOHHHHH SHE IS URKIN ME!

"HEY! HEY! HEY! KNOCK IT OFF! BOTH OF YOU! AYLA! SHE'S ANOTHER MERC THAT WE'RE PROBABLY NOT GONNA SEE AGAIN! KATRINA! AYLA IS A REAL GOOD FRIEND OF MINE! DON'T TALK DOWN TO HER OK!? Jesus LETS JUST GET ON WITH THE MISSION, WE ONLY HAVE TWO MINUTES LEFT TO FINISH THE FLEET OFF!" Damn! I never heard Jack yell at anyone like that. I guess I can't blame him.

"Sorry…" I tell him as I sink back into my seat.

"Sorry Jack…" Katrina says in a cutesy sort of voice. She still sounds like she's trying to be cute for Jack. I am NOT loosing him!

"Hey Ayla, I've cut off the channel for a sec. I just wanted to tell that I'm not going to go to any girl for any reason. And right now…I'm thinking…that I want to take you out on…" Is he suggesting…?

"I want to take you out on a date." OH MY GOD HE ASKED ME ON A DATE!

"YES! HELL YEAH! WHERE DO YOU WANNA GO!?" OH GOD I'M SO EXCITED!

"Actually lets talk about this when we get back to base eh?" Oh right the mission.

"Ok, yeah! Lets get things done!" I tell him.

"Ok, Katrina! Lets head in the cave now! I'll take care of the right, you take care of the left! Got it?" He tells Katrina.

"Got it Jack! Lets go!" She says. As we head for the cave, both Jack and Katrina begin firing their weapons, destroying everything on their way. Wait! What's that?

"That's our bonus target. Prioritize it." Ms. Haze tells us. TANKERS!

"JACK! TANKERS NEXT TO THE AF!" I tell him.

"GOT IT! KATRINA! MACHINE GUNS ON THE TANKERS ON MY MARK! READY?" He instructs her.

"YEAH!" She responds.

"3, 2, 1- FIRE!" He yells as he and Katrina fire their weapons. Jacks rifle and Katrinas' machine guns light up and- WHOA! THOSE TANKERS JUST BLEW UP THE ARMS FORT!

"Ok, enemy Arms Fort down." Ms Haze tells us.

"Ok Katrina, the remaining enemy force is on either side of the cave from this point! Get the right! I'll get the left!" He instructs her.

"Got it!" She responds. We head to the next 2 tankers. JACK JUST USED THE LASER BLADE AGAIN! WOW! THAT IS SOO COOL!

"Wow Blue Blaze, you're pretty good! How much experience do you have?" Katrina asks. She'd better not try flirting with jack again!

"I've had about two years training! And about six years fighters!" Jack tells her.

"How old are you exactly? You sound young for an experienced pilot." She asks.

"Believe it or not, I'm eighteen. I was a pilot for Cradle 02." He tells her.

"Wow…I'm definitely gonna need to talk with you on this subject later." She sounded a bit seductive there! I begin to reach over the seat again-

"Hey Ayla, remember what I said earlier? And besides, I kinda need you to sit back so I can do my job ok?" Oops!

"Sorry about that." I tell him. He nods telling me its ok. We continue to attack the next ships. LAST TWO SHIPS! A CARRIER AND A TANKER!

"Acquiring lock on the carrier! Locked on! FIRE!" FOUR SHOTS AND ITS DOWN! AND A SHOT TO THE TANKER! ONE HIT KILL! As we destroyed these ships, Katrina is showering the enemy ships on the left side of the hangar with those machine guns!

"Confirmed all targets destroyed. Mission complete. Excellent results. I'm impressed." Ms. Haze tells us.

"Uh oh. My fuel and energy systems are low, you are from Prominence correct?" She asks. Somehow, I don't buy her low fuel and energy problem.

"Yeah that's right. And it is the closest base to the area. Come on I'll escort you back to base. We'll re-arm and re-fuel your AC when we get there." Jack is allowing her to come to base?

"Jack what are you doing?" I ask him.

"I can't just leave her to rot can I?" He does have a point.

"Ok, Katrina, set your course for my beacon. Stay on my tail. ETA to Arms Fort Prominence, one hour and eleven minutes." He tells her.

* * *

Prominence Airspace

* * *

"Ok, Katrina, you land first. Prominence, this is Blue Blaze, requesting approach vector for Katrina Hurley." He says.

"Roger that Blue Blaze. Ms. Hurley, you are clear to land in retrieval tunnel 2. Welcome to the Prominence." Ms. Haze says.

"Roger that Prominence control, beginning approach." She says.

She's going in smoothly. Low fuel and energy my ass! Huh? Her AC is acting weird, looks like the boost is acting up.

"Uhh, I'm experiencing some problems with the boosters! I think they've have been fragged by one of the tanker explosions!" Oh no! She really is having problems!

"JACK! DO SOMETHING! AT THIS RATE SHE'S GONNA CRASH!" I yell to him.

"I'M ON IT! TRANSFERRING CONTROLS TO CO PILOT SEAT!" He yells back.

"WAIT, WHAT!? OH NO! SHE'S VEERING TO THE LEFT! SHE'S NOT GONNA MAKE IT! SHE'S GONNA HIT THE PROMINENCE!" I yell to him.

"JACK, HELP ME!" Katrina yells to Jack.

"I'M ON IT! HOLD ON KATRINA!" Jack yells to her A flight control system has just appeared in front of me!

"HURRY! I'M LOOSING CONTROL!" She yells back.

"AYLA! ALL I NEED YOU TO DO IS KEEP US IN THE AIR! USE THE THROTTLE TO DO JUST THAT! IF WE MOVE TOO CLOSE TO THE PROMINENCE, USE THE CONTROL STICK TO MOVE US AWAY!" Jack yells to me.

"Jack! What do you plan on doing!?" I ask him.

"I'm going to hack into her AC from here ant take control!" HUH!?

"Are you sure you'll be able to keep her from crashing!?"

"Not yet!" Oh yeah that's real assuring!

"KATRINA! I'M GONNA TRY TAKING CONTROL! HOLD ON!" He tells her. He's typing like mad on a keyboard.

"GOT IT!" Jack yelled. He took hold of his own flight stick?

"Jack what are you doing!?" I ask.

"I'm using my systems to control her AC!" Jack said.

"JACK! WHAT'S TAKING SO LONG!?" Katrina shrieked. Jack started using the control stick and throttle.

"MY AC'S OPERATING ON ITS OWN!" Katrina yelled in surprise.

"THAT'S ME! I HACKED INTO YOUR SYSTEM! I'M IN CONTROL!" Jack yelled. Katrinas' AC started using sporadic quick boosts toward the Prominence.

"JACK! AT THE CURRENT DESCENT LEVEL AND SPEED, KATRINA WILL CRASH INTO ONE OF THE LEGS OF THE PROMINENCE!" I yell to him.

"GOT IT!" Jack replied. He put the boosters to full throttle. Not enough!

"KATRINA! PURGE YOUR WEAPONS!" Jack ordered.

"ROGER THAT!" Katrina yelled back. Her machine guns and missile launchers fell off of her AC. ITS STILL NOT ENOUGH!

"JACK!" I yell.

"I know…KATRINA! BRACE YOURSELF!" Jack yells. What are you planning Jack?

"PREPARE FOR OB LANDING!" Jack yells. Wait, WHAT!?

"JACK ARE YOU SERIOUS!?" I yell.

"IT'S THE ONLY CHANCE TO SAVE HER! IT'S ALL THAT'S LEFT TO DO!" Jack yelled.

"OK KATRINA HOLD ON! FIRE OB IN 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, FIRE!" Jack yells. He just activated Katrinas' OB!

"JACK! I'M GOING WAY TOO FAST FOR APPROACH!" Katrina yells. She's on the runway! Wait! Something's wrong! She's moving way too fast on that runway!

"JACK! STOP THE OB!" I yell.

"ICAN'T! KATRINA! BREAKS! CUT OFF THE OVER BOOST!" He yells to her.

"I CAN'T STOP IT!" She yells back.

"PROMINENCE CONTROL! DO SOMETHING!" Jack yells.

"ROGER THAT! USE THE MAGNETIC LAUNCH SYSTEM! USE IT TO SLOW DOWN KATRINAS' AC!" They order.

"FIRE!" THEY ACTIVATED IT! IT'S WORKING! SHE'S SLOWING DOWN!

"IT'S NOT ENOUGH! I'M GONNA CRASH INTO THE BULKHEAD!" Katrina yells! HER OVER BOOST IS OUT! BUT SHE'S STILL MOVING TOO FAST!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH! STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!"

* * *

We've just left the hangar but Katrina hasn't come out of her cockpit yet. "Hey, Jack? Do you think Katrinas' all right?" I ask him.

"I don't know, she still hasn't come from the hangar." He tells me.

"Hey I know I was acting a little…immature out there, and I'm sorry." I tell him.

"Ayla, no need to worry, I'm not mad. Buck up a bit, will ya?" He says as he pats me on the back.

"Ok, but I really do hope she's all right." I tell him.

"Yeah I'd feel real bad if she died out there."

"Awww how sweet. You really feel that way about me?" HUH!? THAT'S…

"KATRINA!?" I yell out loud.

"You were worried about me, Jack? Oh, I can feel my heart thumping! I knew I was smart to transfer to this base!" SHE'S TRYING TO FLIRT AGAIN! SHE'S GETTING CLOSE TO JACK! Wait…SHE…TRANSFERRED!

"I had a few ideas about how you'd look, but I never imagined you to be this cute!" SHE'S GOT THE 'DREAMY' EYES! AND SHE'S WALKING HER FINGERS UP JACKS' ARM!

"HEY! KNOCK IT OFF! I ALREADY TOLD YOU, JACK IS MINE!" I yell at her.

"Hey Jack, why don't we go somewhere quiet? I'd like to express my thanks to your efforts for helping me." NO WAY AM I GONNA LET THAT LITTLE WENCH TAKE MY MAN FROM ME!

"JACK WE'RE GOING! WE STILL HAVE TO DISCUSS THE PARTICULARS OF OUR DATE! THAT'S RIGHT KATRINA, HE ASKED ME, NOT YOU!" I yell to her as I grab Jack by the arm. I start walking off and UGH- SHE'S GRABBED JACKS' OTHER ARM!

"HEY LET GO! I ALREADY TOLD YOU! HE'S MINE!" I yell at her.

"IT'S UP TO YOU! JACK! DON'T YOU LOVE ME!?" She yells to him.

"NO JACK! IT'S ME YOU LOVE!" I yell to Jack.

"WHY WASN'T THIS COVERED IN TRAINING!?" Jack yells.

"JACK! I'M NOT LETTING HER GET YOU!" I yell as I move in to kiss him.

"NOT GONNA HAPPEN LITTLE GIRL!" Katrina says as she does the same! I MISSED HIS LIPS! Heh luckily, so did she! Something tells me this could end up getting interesting.

* * *

End of chapter 4

* * *

With more jobs coming in, Jack is excited and ready to take on any challenge, except ones involving love relations. A new merc is working aboard the Prominence, and she has a serious attraction to Jack. Jack already has to deal with Alice and Ayla hanging all over him, now Katrina is added to the mix! This could get ugly…or real funny.

Coming up, In a Torus facility, scientists test a strange device, but when it goes haywire, all but one of the scientists are left alive, a strange jet appears in the distance to help prominence out in a crisis, the Line Ark squadron strikes again, and on coming attacks to the Prominence continue.

And Jack is starting to feel the combined effects of extreme work and lack of sleep. Will he get rest? Who is the scientist in the Torus facility? What is the devise they're testing? And why are there so many attacks on Prominence all of a sudden?

Find out in the next chapter of Armored Core the Uprising Chapter 5: The Kojima Angel! See you next job!


	5. Chapter 5

Armored Core the UprisingChapter 5: The Kojima Angel

Torus research facility (Alicias' perspective) Three weeks later.

My name is Alicia Reai. I'm a part of the Torus research teams working with Kojima technology. My dad is the head of a project making a Kojima Particle conversion devise. It is called Project 'Kojima Angel' and its purpose is basically to clean the air around it and make the surface clean again…eventually. My job here is-

"CUT OFF THE POWER TO THE KP CONVERTER! IT'S OVERLOADING! CUT OFF THE POWER BEFORE IT EXPLODES!" DAD JUST SAID IT'S OVERLOADING! THIS ISN'T GOOD! CUTTING OFF POWER SUPPLY FROM MY AREA NOW! DONE!

"POWER SUPPLY FROM MY AREA IS CUT OFF FROM THE KP CONVERTER!" I yell to them.

"TOO LATE GET OUT OF HERE- **BOOM** AAAHHHHH! THERE'S A HUGE PIECE OF METAL COMING MY WAY! I'M GONNA DIE! I CAN SEE IT GETTING CLOSER!

"ALICIAAAAA-!" Daddy!? HE GOT IN THE WAY OF THE METAL PLATE! AAAHH!! IT….HIT HIM! daddy!?

"Alicia…run!…finish…what I started…" He handed me a data chip as he said that. Daddy? He's…dead!? HE FELL OVER! NO PULSE! NOTHING!

"DADDYYYYYYYYYY!" HE'S DEAD! DADDY NO!

"DON'T LEAVE ME!" **SCRRRRRRRRREATCH** AH! EVERYTHING'S COLLAPSING! I NEED TO RUN! HE WANTED ME TO LIVE! HERES MY SECURITY CARD! COME ON SLIDE THROUGH THE READER! **BOOM**

"AAAAAHH!" COME ON! **UNLOCKED**. DOOR'S OPEN! AH! GOTTA GET TO THE HANGAR! THERE SHOULD BE SOMETHING I CAN USE TO GET OUT OF HERE! AH! ALL EXPLOSIONS EVERYWHERE!

"SOMEBODY HELP MEEE!" HUH!? SOMEONE'S GRABBED ME! PULLING ME ALONG THE HALLS! WHO…

WHO IS THIS GUY!?

"DON'T WORRY! I'LL GET YOU OUTTA HERE!" He tells me, he sounds so sure! HE'S TAKING ME THROUGH THE HALLS! TO THE HANGAR!

"HURRY! WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE NOW!" He tells me.

"WHO ARE YOU!?" I ask.

"NAME'S JACK! MERC OF THE LEAGUE!" He tells me. A mercenary!? Why is he saving me? Is he paid to do this? Huh? He looks…deprived, I can see the bags under his eyes. Will he be able to operate?

"WHY ARE YOU HERE!? HOW DID YOU FIND THIS FACILITY!?" I ask him.

"WELL, MY AC RADAR WAS SHOWING ME SOME REALLY WEIRD READIGS THAT LEAD HERE! NOW CAN WE KEEP MOVING AND TALK LATER!?" He asks. He sounds…strong…determined…what is it I feel right now? He's a mercenary, they all seem so scary, but I don't feel afraid of him for some reason…WE'RE ALMOST TO THE HANGAR!

"OK, LISTEN UP!" He says as he stops me.

"WE'RE GOING TO GET OUT OF HERE IN AN ARMORED CORE! I'M SURE YOUR FAMILIAR WITH ONE, BUT, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE EVER BEEN IN ONE SO I HAVE TO WARN YOU, THE G-FORCES CAN BE PRETTY HARSH!" He tells me.

"OK YEAH! LETS GO! BEFORE WE GET COOKED!" I say as I look at the oncoming explosion behind us.

"RIGHT LETS GO!" He says. WE'RE MOVING ALONG THE CATWALKS TO HIS AC!

"GET IN!" AH! HE JUST SHOVED ME IN! ANOTHER EXPLOSION!

"JACK!" I yell to him.

"AAAAAAAHHH!" HE LANDED ON ME!

"SORRY" He says as he gets up.

"HEY, MOVE IT! WE DON'T HAVE ABY TIME TO WASTE!" He yells.

I'm in the back seat! I can see everything from inside! All the explosions going on!

"ALL SYSTEMS NOMINAL! STRAP YOURSELF IN! WE'RE OUT OF HERE!" He says. UMPH! HE JUST STARTED BOOSTING UPWARD! HE'S RIGHT! THESE G-FORCES ARE HARSH! OH NO! ALL THE BULKHEADS ARE LOCKED!

"JACK! THE BULKHEADS!" I warn him.

"I know." He sounds so calm! WE'RE CHARGING TOWARD THEM!

"SLASH!" HE JUST USED A LASER BLADE AND IT WORKED!? ONE HIT!?

"HOLD ON! Standby for over boost!" OVER BOOST?! HE'S CRAZY FOR TRYING SOMETHING LIKE THAT IN THIS TIGHT OF CORRIDORS!

"FIRE THE OB!" He says as he- UGH! HE ACTIVATED THE OVER BOOST! WE'RE SCREAMING DOWN THE NARROW CORRIDORS OF THE FACILITY! I BARELY EVEN NOTICE THE WARNING LIGHTS AND ALARMS ANYMORE! OVER BOOST IS DEPLETED! WE'VE REACHED THE UPWARD SHAFTS! THAT'S OUR WAY OUT!

On our way up I notice now that the explosions have been lessened out here than in the lab halls. But we're still not out of trouble yet.

"Don't worry back there! We're almost to the extraction point!" He tells me.

"Umm, my name is Alicia, if it's important at the moment." I tell him.

"Don't worry, I like knowing the names of who I'm working with. I just didn't think about it until now." He tells me.

"Almost there Alicia!" He tells me. I can see the exit from here! WE'RE ALMOST OUT!

"FIRING OVER BOOST!" He just activated them agai-

"!" I JUST GOT THROWN BACK IN MY SEAT AGAIN! HUH!? I SEE DAYLIGHT! I've never seen the surface as it is now. Such a barren land! No green, just a wasteland. I never realized the extent of the damage from the Kojima particles…

"Alicia, just so you know, I'm taking you back to my base, it's an Arms Fort called the Prominence, Spirit of Motherwill class. You'll be safe there." He tells me. He sounds so sincere. Why do I not feel threatened while being near him? Normally, when there's a mercenary near me I feel threatened even if he seems to be nice company. Something about this guy seems different though…

"Ok, thank you." I tell him.

"If you want you can get to sleep. It's going to be a while before we get to Prominence." He tells me. Shouldn't he get some sleep too? Well I guess he is the pilot but don't Armored Cores have an auto pilot system?

My job in project 'Kojima Angel' was to monitor everything that was going on with the device. But now my team is dead…my team, and family. It's up to me to finish what daddy started. This data chip has the all information recorded from the start of the project. Don't worry daddy, I'll finish the project Kojima Angel…

"ALICIA! ALICIA WAKE UP!" HUH!? WHAT? I CAN HEAR THE WARNINGS IN THE AC GOING OFF LIKE CRAZY!

"WHATS WRONG?" I ask.

"WE HAVE COMPANY! I'M A BIT OVERWHELMED HERE I NEED YOU TO BE A SECOND PAIR OF EYES! LOOK IN ALL DIRECTIONS YOU CAN AND TELL ME THE MOMENT ANYTHING WITHIN 5000 FEET STARTS CLOSING IN!" He yells to me.

"OK!" As I look everywhere I can, I see a whole MASS of old fighters high above us, and drones flying around the area! There's so many! OH NO!

"JACK! TO THE LEFT!" I yell to him! Without even saying anything he reacts with speed I've never seen! HE SHOT THE NORMAL DOWN FLAWLESSLY! AH!

"JACK! ABOVE US!" AGAIN! HE REACTED! THE JET TOOK A DIRECT HIT TO THE ENGINES!

"All Line Ark units, this is your commander, our target is identified! You are weapons free! Take him down!" Line Ark? What are they doing here!?

"PROMINENCE! THIS IS BLUE BLAZE, REQUESTING IMMIDIAT SUPPORT FIRE!" He yells to the base.

"NEGATIVE BLUE BLAZE! OUR MISSILE BATTERIES HAVE BEEN BROUGHT OFFLINE DUE TO RISK OF DAMAGE! IF THEY DESTROY TOO MANY OF OUR WEAPONS, THE FIRES WILL SPREAD TO THE INTERIOR AND DESTROY THE AF! YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN!" They tell him.

"COME ON! I'M BEING OVERWHELMED OUT HERE!" He yells as he kills more enemies.

"See that men? He's not invincible. He's getting close to the end of his rope. Lets take care of him." OH NO! THEY'RE TOO MUCH FOR HIM! IF WE DIE HERE, PROJECT KOJIMA ANGEL WON'T BE FINISHED!

"JACK! DON'T GIVE UP! WE NEED TO LIVE!" I yell to him.

"I DON'T PLAN ON DYING HERE! I WON'T! IZZY IS STILL ABOARD! WITHOUT ME SHE'S VULNERABLE!" he's determined! Wow! But who's Izzy? AH!

"JACK!-" BEFORE I COULD EVEN CONTINUE HE'S ALREADY GOING AFTER WHAT I WAS GOING TO TELL HIM! HIS FLYING IS AMAZING! MORE!? THERE ARE MORE COMING!

"COME ON! THERE ARE TOO MANY! PROMINENCE! LAUNCH NORMALS! SCRAMBLE FIGHTERS! HAVE KATRINA LAUNCH IN HER AC! FIRE SUPPORT MISSILES, CANNONS! DO SOMETHING! I CANT TAKE ALL OF THESE ENEMIES OUT ON MY OWN!" He yells to them.

"LAUNCHING RE-ENFORCEMENTS IS A NO GO BLUE BLAZE! EVERYTHING IS CURRENTLY UNDER MAINTENANCE! I'M SORRY BUT WE CAN'T LAUNCH ANYTHING AT THIS TIME! WE WILL LAUNCH ANYONE READY TO GO AS SOON AS AN AVAILABLE CRAFT IS READY! I'M SORRY JACK!" Prominence control responds.

I hope they can launch some extra help. Huh!?

"JACK! TO THE RIGHT!" I yell. HE LOOKED SURPRISED! HE'S REACTING SLOWER THAN BEFORE! **MISSILE WARNING BEEB…BEEB…BEEB…BEEB BEEB BEEB BEEB….**

"JACK!" I yell. HE'S NOT RESPONDING FAST ENOUGH, HE'S HAVING A HARD TIME FLYING!

"I…CAN'T…KEEP DODGING!" Jack responds. HE LOKS LIKE HE'S GOING TO FALL ASLEEP! **BOOOOM!** AH! What was that? The forces were just halved! A missile?

"Jack did you see that!?" I ask.

"Ugh! Kind of…" He responds. He sounds so exhausted!

"Jack, maybe you should try and land at the base." I suggest.

"I can't, not until the enemy forces around have been destroyed!" Jack said. He's so tired! He's not going to last much longer! He's breathing heavily!

"PROMINENCE CONTROL! ENEMY COUNT!?" Jack asks. He's panting!

"About twenty five percent of the initial force remains. There's an unknown aircraft circling above, targeting the enemy. Be careful, it hasn't made radio contact but also hasn't target you or the Prominence." They tell him.

"Right…ENGAGING THE REMAINING FORCES! **BOOOOM! **Another explosion! More of the enemy forces are still out there!

"Twenty shot succession!" Jack struggled to say that! He's firing at the enemy! Twenty shots and twenty hits!

"You're almost there Blue Blaze, hang in there!" Prominence control says. Jack is still holding on! This is amazing! He's not stopping without a fight! What is that jet though? I can see a black jet out in the distance. It's circling around for another attack run!

"Jack look!" I say to him as I point to the jet. Jack is looking but he's switching off between the jet and his instruments! Here it comes! It just launched another missile!

**BOOOOM! **It just annihilated the last of the enemies out here!

"All enemy forces have been destroyed. You did good out there, Blue Blaze. RTB."

"Roger that Prominence control. Requesting approach vector." Jack says.

"JACK! I'M SO SORRY! I would have launched but we had problems down here. I'm sorry, honey." A girl over the radio just contacted him. I wasn't aware that he had a significant other.

"Katrina…it's fine." He says. He looks stressed.

"Jack, are you ok?" I ask him.

"Yeah, I just don't like it when she calls me that. She insists on trying to get me to be her boyfriend and yet we only met a few days ago. On top of that I have two other girls also fighting over me as well. it gets tiring." He says…so…she's not his girlfriend…I wonder if he-

"Ugh!" Jack just grunted! AH! THE AC ISN'T STABLE!

"JACK WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" I yell to him. HE'S HAVING A HARD TIME CONTROLLING THE AC!

"I'M FINE! PROMINENCE, SOMETHING'S WRONG WITH MY AC! IT'S NOT RESPONDING THE WAY…IT NORMALLY DOES…" Jack says. It's not a problem with the AC…you're too tired!

"BLUE BLAZE, BEGIN LANDING APPROACH TO RUNWAY 2-B! BE CAREFUL!" Prominence control orders.

"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!! COME ON!" Jack yells. WE'RE MOVING IN FAST! THE ALTITUDE IS DROPPING TOO FAST!

"JACK! WE'RE FALLING BELOW THE RUNWAY!" I yell.

"I'M ON IT! I…I CAN GET THIS!" Jack is struggling too much! HE'S ADDED MORE THRUST! WE'RE ABOVE THE RUNWAY NOW!

"BLUE BLAZE! YOU'RE COMING IN TOO FAST!" Prominence control yelled. JACK! COME ON! HOLD ON!

"JACK!" I yell. He's snapped back and got back to the controls! UUF! WE'VE LANDED ON THE RUNWAY! WE'RE STILL MOVING TOO FAST! WE'RE SCREAMING TOWARD THE BULKHEAD!

"JACK, USE THE BREAKS!" I yell to him. He's not responding.

"JACK! JACK! YOU'RE GOING TO SMASH INTO THE BULKHEAD!" Prominence control yells. HE STILL WON'T RESPOND! WE'RE HALFWAY DOWN THE RUNWAY! Wait! He's…asleep!? That must be the throttle! If I can reach it I can stop it! Ok I'm reaching over Jacks' seat and…

"GOT IT!" I got the throttle control! All I have to do is pull back! Right!? AH! MY HAND SLIPPED! JUST NEED TO GET IT AGAIN…

"PLEASE!" I…HAVE…TO…REACH IT! GOT IT! Pulling back! WE'RE STILL MOVING IN FAST! AH! I NEED TO OPEN THE COM CHANNEL!

"PROMINENCE! JACK IS UNCONCIOUS AND I CAN'T STOP THE AC! HELP ME!" I yell to them.

"MA'AM, HOLD ONTO THOSE BREAKS! WE'RE ACTIVATING THE MAGNETIC FIELD! THAT WILL SLOW YOU DOWN!" ONLY SLOW ME DOWN!?

"ACTIVATING MAGNETIC FOELD NOW!" Prominence control says. COME ON STOP! STOP! PLEASE! WE'RE GETTING CLOSER TO THE BULKHEAD! WE'RE SLOWING DOWN!

"PLEASE STOOOOP!" My eyes are shut tight! The noise! It stopped! I don't feel like I'm in motion anymore! As I open one of my eyes…I see that we're right in front of the bulkhead…we…are alive.

"Can you set the AC to autopilot?" Prominence control asks me. Autopilot…where is it?

"I don't know where it is." I tell them.

"It should be the switch to the left of the com switch." They tell me. Com switch…HERE IT IS! I pushed it! AH! The AC is moving on its own, into the hangar! There are a lot of armaments inside this hangar! OH! I think that's where the AC will dock, the open space by the other AC…The AC has docked and the cockpit hatch has just opened.

I'm sitting back in the second seat now. There's a team rushing over here. Jack is still not conscious.

"JACK!!" A girls' voice? It's different from the other one I heard. I think that's her.

"JACK! WAKE UP! PLEASE WAKE UP!" She yells. She took a hold of him. This girl really care's about him.

"CAN YOU HELP HIM!?" She asked me?!

"Uhh…I'm not a doctor." I tell her.

"Wait, who are you?" She asked me.

"…My name is Alicia Reai. I'm a scientist of Torus." I tell her.

"Nice to meet you but let's get Jack out of here and to his bunk! He needs rest! Dammit Jack, I told you that you needed rest." She says. She's pulling him out of the cockpit and holding him in her arms…I just climbed out of the cockpit and fixed my skirt.

"My name is Ayla, by the way." She tells me. I nod to her and go to help her carry Jack and- OOF! AH! Someone just shoved past me and I'm on the floor!

"JACK! ARE YOU OK HONEY!?" Another girl asks. I think that's the girl I heard over the radio. Everyone else around is looking at her like a madwomen.

"Hey, are you alright?" A younger girl asked. She looks about three years younger than me.

"Uh…I'm ok." I tell her as I get up…

Ayla just got done making things comfortable for Jack. I'm glad he's getting rest. He was so tired out there.

"Alicia, could you take care of him for a bit? I need to have a talk with SOMEONE outside!" She started eyeing the other girl.

"Um…sure." I tell her.

"Alice, Izzy, you two as well." Ayla says.

"Aww, but I want to stay with him!" The other of the younger girls is complaining. She's cute.

"Exactly why you need to come with us Alice." Ayla tells her.

"Just keep an eye on him, if he wakes up, he'll like the company." Ayla tells me with a smile. She and the other three girls left the room and closed the door. He's so cute when he's asleep. And he's so peaceful. For some reason, feeling of a mercenary isn't anywhere near him. Why not? I don't understand it at all…

You know, I think that it's not all that important. He seems like a good guy. I'm sitting right at the end of his bed, right next to him. I hope I can finish my daddys' work. As I hold the data chip in my hand that daddy gave me, I noticed on it, it says, 'Project Kijima Angel' on the back.

Maybe he can help me make this dream a reality.

"I hope you can help me with this. If you do, you'll be helping in making a cleaner world." I whisper to him. I place my hand on his forehead and- WHAT!? It's burning hot!

"Aaaaahhh! Uhh, haah…" Jack's suffering! I HAVE TO TELL EVERYONE ELSE! I'm on my way to the mess hall! God! I have to hurry! Here's the mess hall! Where are they!? OH THERE THEY ARE!

"JACK'S IN TROUBLE!" I yell to them. Ayla turned to me with shock written all over her face, The other girl about her age just spit out her drink, and the two younger girls jumped up in my direction.

"WHAT'S WRONG!?" Ayla asked.

"I touched his forehead and it's burning up! Also he won't wake up!" I explain. They all started hurrying out of the mess hall! As we all run back to Jack's bunk, I notice every one of us are basically loosing our minds right now! Here's Jack's room.

"Jack! Jack! Please talk to me! Jack wake up!" Ayla says as she holds him up. He doesn't respond! Nothing!

"AAAAAHHHH! Aaahhhh!" Jack is still in pain!

"Jack…" Ayla whispers.

"I've seen this before." The other older girl says.

"What do you mean?" Ayla asks.

"Has he been exposed to any Kojima particles?" She asks.

"Not that I can think of. Why?" Ayla asks.

"This is something serious if he has. Assuming he was exposed to those particles at some time or another, he will continue to have a high fever and remain in a coma. If he has been exposed to a high amount of the particles, he'll be in a coma for a while. It is a serious condition and possibly fatal." She explains.

"What if we used his particle scanner?" one of the younger girls asks.

"Good idea, get it." The older girl says. She got the device and started scanning.

"Oh my god!" She says.

"What is it!?" The rest of us ask. She looked to us with shock in her eyes.

"He's sick with Kojima poisoning!"

End of chapter 5

Things are getting bad for Jack. Sick with Kojima poisoning and stuck in a coma, unable to wake up. Alicia Reai has joined with Jack, Ayla, and the others. She has lost her old team and father, her only family. Now Alicia is determined to continue work on 'Project Kojima Angel' and she is also feeling a bit of an attraction toward Jack, whether she knows it or not.

Coming up, Jack continues to fight the Kojima poisoning and reliving the hardships of his past in his dreams. Ayla and the other girls do their best to take care of him and help him get better, Katrina takes his place on defense runs for the time being, and Ayla, Alicia, Izzy, and Alice begin to prepare a surprise for Jack for when he recovers. The mystery of why the Prominence keeps falling under attack still remains.

Will Jack recover? What kind of Surprise will they prepare for Jack? How many more attacks will there be on Prominence? And will Alicia be able to start on her fathers' work? Find out in the next chapter of Armored Core the Uprising, Chapter 6: JACK COME BACK TO US! See you next Job!


	6. Chapter 6

Armored Core the Uprising

Chapter 6: JACK! COME BACK TO US!

Prominence medical bay (Katrinas' perspective)

My name is Katrina Hurley. I'm an Armored Core pilot for GA. I recently transferred to the Prominence, Arms Fort of the league.

He's in bad shape. Ayla told me that Jack hasn't been getting enough sleep ever since he got aboard the Prominence. She hasn't told me anything about a possible Particle exposure at anytime. When was he exposed to those particles? As I look at him, I realize that he really is a fighter. He's trying so hard to hold off the Kojima sickness.

"AHHH! Uhhnnn" Jack is in so much pain in there! We are all standing outside his room now. All we can do is watch through the large glass window and monitor his status from here.

"Come on guys, let's let him get some rest." I tell Ayla and the others.

"Get better Jack, I would be so heartbroken if you died." Alice says. She's something else. She has that childish crush on him. It's kind of cute. There goes Izzy, Alicia…Ayla's still looking into his room.

"Ayla…come on, you're scheduled to perform maintenance on Jacks' AC." I tell her. She looks so worried for him. She's not responding.

"Ayla, do you hear me?" I ask her.

"What? Oh, sorry. I'm coming." She says as she gets up. She's on her way to the door…she stopped to get one more look at him before he leaves.

"I love you Jack." She says. I love him too. We all love him. As much as I want to give her flak about it, I know the best thing right now is to set that aside.

"Katrina, we need you on the bridge pronto!" The captain says over the speaker system.

"Head on with everyone, else ok Ayla?" I ask.

"Ok, I just hope he'll be ok." Ayla said.

"We can only hope when dealing with Kojima poisoning." I whisper to her. She nods and continues out of the medical bay. I'm not sure, but I think he has something higher than basic Kojima poisoning, no way to be sure yet. I guess we'll have to wait until the test results come in.

We're all down in the mess hall trying to eat. So far it seems that Alicia, Ayla and I are the only ones able to eat. Ayla's not eating much though. Izzy and Alice refuse to eat anything at all.

"Girls you have to eat something." I tell them.

"I'm not hungry." Alice says.

"**Sigh** You really need to eat. I'm pretty sure Jack wouldn't like it if you starved." I tell her. She still refuses to eat. **Sigh** She can't do this.

"Alice, please. You need to be strong for him. We need to continue everything that we're doing while Jack recovers." I tell her.

"How can I when he could die?" She asks. She obviously knows about Kojima poisoning.

"Look, he might be sick with something that could be fatal ASSUMING that it is moderate or advanced poisoning. Right now we don't even know the level of poisoning he has." I tell her.

"AND WHAT IF HIS POISONING IS ADVANCED!? WHAT IF IT IS FATAL!?" She yells as she jumps up.

"I'm sure he'll be able to make it through this. After all, there are good medics and doctors looking after him. Also I think he's a strong enough person as it is. Knowing him, he'll be fine. Now sit down and eat!" I tell her. She sat back down quietly. Finally she and Izzy started eating. I understand that they care about him but they all need to have more confidence in him.

It's like they doubt he can fight something like this. Hmm? Alicia barely eating as well, does she have some emotional attachment to Jack as well?

"Hey! Bookworm? What's your deal?" I ask her.

"…Umm…it's nothing." She says. There is something bothering her.

"You're worried about him aren't you?" I ask her.

"It's not that…I see the way you all look at him…I don't want to get in the way." She says. She does care about him.

"You do care about him, don't you?" I ask her. She's looking nervous.

"…I'm afraid of mercenaries…so I…" She is unbelievable.

"So you want him to die? IS THAT IT!?" I yell. She's tearing up.

"No…there's something different about him, I'm sure. It's just…I don't know." She says.

"It's either you care about him or you don't! Which is it!?" I ask her. She's quiet.

"Give her a break Katrina! She's only just met Jack and has a fear of mercenaries, its understandable. But she DID say that there's something different about him. That obviously means that she's at least willing to give him a chance." Ayla tells me. She's taking the bookworms' side.

"You know what Ayla? I thought you loved him. I thought you cared!" I tell her.

"WHAT ON EARTH GAVE YOU THAT IDEA!? I DO CARE ABOUT HIM! I'M WORRIED SICK ABOUT HIM! ALL I'M DOING RIGHT NOW IS GET YOU TO BE A BIT EASY ON ALICIA!" She yells as she jumps up from her chair.

"Seriously, you need to calm down and eat. It's her own fault for going against Jack!" I tell her.

"But she's NOT against Jack! She's just not sure what she feels about him right now. She also has to deal with the transfer as well. From what I saw in the reports, her base was destroyed and she now has nowhere else to go. That's a lot to take in." Ayla tells me.

"Well…I guess you're right. But still, she's too wishy-washy about this." I tell her.

"Like I said. She's got a lot to take in right now! Cut her some slack Katrina!" Ayla tells me. I don't want to say anything else. The last thing anyone needs right now is a big fight in the middle of the mess.

"Just sit down and eat. Let's not make this any worse than it already is." I tell her as I get back to my food. She sat back down next to the bookworm. We're all on edge right now. All we can do right now is wait for the test results. After that, depending on the result…we'll have to pray for a miracle…

We're back in the medical bay of the Prominence. The doctor is about to tell us the test results. He's just got done working on some of the computers in the room Jack is in. Here he comes. The door just opened, he's holding a clipboard.

"Ok, I have the results but…you're not going to like them." The doctor says. Oh no! He has Advanced poisoning doesn't he!? I'm not sure how Alice and Izzy are going to take this.

"Alice, Izzy, why don't you two wait outside?" I suggest.

"Why? We want to know the results too! Does it really matter if we hear them now or later?" Izzy asks.

"I suppose you're right. Doctor, please just tell us." I say. I'm worried about what it will be.

"Well first of all, I'm surprised he's in as good of condition as he is. At some point or another, was exposed to an unbelievable amount of Kojima particles. He's lucky to be in the condition he's in now. If anything, he's lucky to still be breathing." He tells us. OH MY GOD! WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN!?

"DOCTOR! THE RESULTS!" I snap. He's beating around the bush!

"Right…he has advanced Kojima poisoning. Border lining Severe Kojima poisoning…his fever is currently holding at one hundred and three degrees." The doctor tells us.

"OH MY GOD! IS HE GOING TO DIE!?" Ayla asks as she grabs him by the lab coat. I understand what Ayla is feeling right now.

"There is a chance that he'll survive but…" He says.

"But…!?" Ayla asks.

"….But that chance is very slim. I've only heard of a handful of people out of so many that have survived Advanced Kojima poisoning." The doctor says.

"BUT THERE IS A WAY TO SAVE HIM RIGHT!?" Ayla demands. She's starting to cry.

"It isn't confirmed-"

"ISN'T THERE!?" Ayla cut him off. Ayla…

"…The only thing we can do right now is remove the Kojima particles from his body and we already did that. All we can do now…is 'hope' that he survives." The doctor explains. Ayla just let go of him and is looking into the room at Jack. Alicia, Izzy, and Alice all look like they're about to burst out in tears.

Ayla is already crying. She's really letting it out. This…reminds me of…

"What exactly is it about Kojima poisoning that makes it fatal?" I ask.

"To be honest, we don't know, some people have come to believe that it's the damaging effects that the particles have, others believe that it's the prolonged fever." He explains.

"If we manage to counter his body temperature, do you think that will help his condition any?" I ask.

"How would you go about doing that?" He asks.

"Lower the room temperature and crank up the air conditioning." I suggest. He's shaking his head?

"That will take up too much power, and that probably wouldn't lower his temperature enough." He explains.

"Then what about having him in cold water? He can still be attached to those machines while still in water right?" I ask. The doctor is thinking about it. As I look to everyone else, they're looking at him intently.

"I'm sorry, but that is out of the question. He needs to be constantly monitored and he can't be while submerged in water. It makes things difficult." He says.

"Then what do we do about lowering his temperature?" I ask.

"We'll just have to leave him on the hospital bed wearing pretty much nothing and deactivate any and all heat sources in there. It probably won't do much but it's better than nothing." He says.

"Then do it." I tell him. If it's all we can do, then we need to do it. It will help. He nods and heads back into the room and the door shuts behind him. He's doing something on that computer again. Maybe that will remove the heat sources. He's done there and now he's taking care of the clothing problem. He removed the cover and now is pulling Jack out of that flight suit.

Jack has a BDU underneath! No wonder he's burning like that! It's a good thing he's getting out of that… The doctor just finished removing the unnecessary clothing from Jack. He looks like he's trying to move. Don't strain yourself Jack. Get some rest.

"AAAAHHH! Ahhhh!" Jack moans in pain. I hope he makes it through this…

Everyone else is off doing something else right now. I've already performed maintenance on my AC and have nothing left to do for now. I'm sitting just outside Jacks' room. I can't help but think about how he's feeling in there. He's got to be in so much pain right now…I don't think I can handle another one…

(Izzys' perspective)

My name is Izzy. Like Jack, I don't know my last name. It was last night that he returned from that Torus facility with Alicia. Alice and I are trying to study our homework right now but we can't stop worrying about Jack. It keeps coming back into my head. I can't stop thinking about what it would be like without him around.

"Alice, do you think he'll be ok?" I ask her.

"I hope so! I don't think my heart would be able to take it!" She says. I cock an eyebrow at her.

"What?" She asks.

"Nothing. You just seem a bit too eccentric for your own good. If I were you, I wouldn't get my hopes too high." I tell her.

"What's that supposed to mean!?" She asks.

"Haven't you seen the way Jack looks at Ayla in comparison to the way he looks at you?" I ask her.

"Are you saying that he likes her more that me!?" She asks.

"I'm saying that she's more fitting to be with him that you." I tell her. She's looking at me, anger in her eyes.

"Whatever!" She says.

"Ok, if you don't want to listen to reason. But remember, now really isn't the best time for that. We're dealing with the possibility Jack not being able to live anymore." I tell her.

"**Sigh** Yeah…I know…" She responds. She looks like she'll cry at any moment. I reach over and place my hand on her shoulder.

"Hey…I think he'll be ok." I tell her. She's looking to me.

"You really think so?" She asks me.

"He's a fighter. He won't let go without a good fight." I tell her.

"How can you be so sure?" She asks me.

"Pfft! I've known him for as long as I can remember. I think I know my own brother better than anyone aboard this Arms Fort." I tell her. She's perking up.

"Right…so do you know this one?" She asks as she points to one of her problems…

We've just finished our homework and now have some free time. We're going to see how Jack's doing. I bet Katrina is already there.

"Hey Izzy?" Alice asks.

"Hmm?" I respond.

"Everyone is wrong at some point or another, what if you're wrong about Jack in this situation?" She asks.

"**Sigh **I already told you, he's not going down without a fight. Kojima poisoning won't take him so easily." I tell her as I hold her shoulder.

"I guess so…but from what we heard of Kojima poisoning…I'm still not sure if he'll be able to make it." She tells me.

"ALICE! Jack will make it through this! Just wait and see! I'm sure he can get through this!" I tell her.

"I just don't know…" She says. Oh here's the medical bay. As we open the door, we notice that Katrina is in there looking into Jacks' section of the room.

"Hey Katrina." I say.

"Oh, hi girls." She says.

"How's he looking?" Alice asks.

"He's fighting in there…his vitals are saying that he's still alive and with us. And so far his condition is neither getting better or worse." Katrina tells us. There's a tear on Katrinas' cheek.

"Hey, Katrina, I know my brother better than anyone aboard. He won't die that easily. Every time he's ever been put in a life threatening situation, he has ALEAYS refused to die." I tell her. She wipes the tear off her cheek.

"I hope you're right." She says.

(Aylas' perspective)

Alicia and I are in the hangar working on Jacks' Armored Core. Well, I'm working on it and she's going over the systems and basically studying it. I think I'll take a break. I'm right above the cockpit. I'll hang down and talk to her a while.

"Hey Alicia-"

"AAHHH!" She screamed. Oops. I scared her. She really jumped.

"Sorry about that. Hey, why don't you take a break?" I ask.

"But I was about to look at the ventilation systems. If I can see how those work, I'll be able to see if the Kojima particles got inside. If so, that might be why he's sick with Kojima poisoning." She tells me. OH SHIT! I NEVER TOOK CARE OF THE VENTILATION!

"So what does it say?" I ask. She's really focused on that.

"Well, it says that the air intake is operating at one hundred percent. The anti-Kojima filters need to be replaced. They've needed to since yesterday…" She continues. Ok so if it's not the filtration systems…

"I found it!" she says. Huh!?

"There has been a problem with the ventilation systems as I thought. The systems in this AC are designed to flush any and all particles from inside the cockpit that may be harmful." She explains.

"So what's the problem? It seems like a pretty good system, what happened?" I ask.

"Well, during one of the times that this AC was on the battlefield, it took a hard hit, a direct hit to the core piece, and that fragged the ventilation system. It malfunctioned." She says. Hmm, I never noticed anything like that.

"You wouldn't happen to be the mechanic assigned to this AC would you?" She asks.

"Actually I am. You know, I'm surprised I didn't notice anything like this. I look over the AC every day from head to toe and I haven't once noticed this system." I tell her.

"Hmmm, it isn't something that would be easy to find. You would really have to go deep into the system and actually know what to look for." She tells me. Hmmm I wonder…

"Hey Alicia?" I ask.

"Hmm?" She responds.

"What exactly do I have to look for?" I ask her.

"Come in here and tale a look." She says. I hop down and stand next to the pilot seat in the cockpit. WOW! That's a complex system!

"This…might end up proving difficult. What's the damaged part?" I ask.

"Here. This is what you need to fix." She says as she points to a small part.

"Damn…this is actually going to be a bit challenging." I say as I stand straight. I look to Alicia and I notice she's sitting back and staring off.

"Hey, what's on your mind?" I ask.

"It's that plane that appeared yesterday. I swear I've seen it before." She says. Oh yeah, that fighter that whipped out more than half of those drones.

"Is it some…experimental craft? Something that Torus or another company made?" I ask.

"I can't remember…I do know some of its schematics though." She says. Hmmm

"Really? Hey, do you want to do something special for Jack?" I ask her. She's looking at me with question in her eyes.

"But I thought that you and Jack-" Alicia starts.

"It doesn't matter. You care about him right?" I ask.

"Well…he did save me…I would like to do anything I can to help." She tells me.

"Well good. If you have knowledge on schematics of that fighter, let's make a new one for Jack. Something that can pack a bit more punch." I tell her.

"But I don't have the schematics. And even if I do remember some things, it's only in my head and probably won't be accurate." She says.

"Well then, try and find the schematics then. I'm pretty sure someone like you shouldn't find it too hard to do." I say to her as I get down from the AC. This will be a nice surprise for him if…when he recovers. I have to be confident in him. No one can afford to give up hope…not yet.

(Alices' perspective)

I can see Jack suffering in there. He's barely moving but when he does…you can see the pain in his face. Izzy, Katrina and myself are all still waiting for him to get better. I don't know much about Kojima poisoning but, from what I hear, it's a miracle Jack's holding on as much as he is. How does he do it?

"Alice?" Izzy asks. I turn to her and see that she has her hand on my shoulder. She's smiling.

"Alice, he'll be ok." Izzy tells me. I don't know how or why, but, I believe her. It's like I don't have to worry after hearing her say that. I just don't understand, as bad as this Kojima poisoning sounds, I just don't feel all that worried anymore. Maybe Izzy's right. Maybe…he will make it through.

"Alice." Katrina says.

"Hey, tell me something. How did you meet Jack?" Katrina asked.

"Well, he was the pilot that got me off of the Abraham Lincoln and back here." I tell her.

"I wonder why they sent Jack? Playing 'delivery boy' doesn't seem link him at all." Katrina says.

"Actually, he was the only one who was able to land on the carrier. You see, there was an Arms Fort called Stigro out there and he was able to stop it with a fighter plane." I tell her. She looks intrigued.

"Really? How did he do that?" Katrina asks.

"I don't know for sure but I remember hearing the conversation. From what I heard, He used the Stigros' missiles against it and knocked it out." I tell her.

"And this was done using only a fighter plane?" Katrina asks.

"Yeah! The cherry blossom painted F-14 down in the hangar." Izzy states.

"Yeah, that one. I remember the paintjob." I tell her.

"Now THAT'S interesting." Katrina says.

"Yeah, he also flew from Cradle 02s' defenses, dodged them all, evaded the Line Ark squadron, and flew all the way here under heavy fire with me in his lap inside the X-02. You want to talk about skill? That's skill right there." Izzy said. Katrina is looking confused at Izzy.

"Why exactly were you sitting in his lap while in a one-man fighter?" Katrina asked. I kinda wish I could have sat in his lap like that.

"It was the only way to get both him and me off of the cradle at the time. That X-02 was his only plane. We had no other way." Izzy explained.

"And Jack has also flown solo defense while aboard the cradles too." Izzy said. Wait, by himself?

"He flew defense on his own?" I asked.

"Yeah, from what people told me, he was the only qualified pilot aboard the Cradle. There were other people aboard the cradle helping him from there but he was the only fighter pilot…they never thanked him for what he did. He was sixteen and flying defense, nearly died many times up there and they still never showed gratitude. Nothing." Izzy explained. That's horrible!

"WHY!? WHY DIDN'T THEY! HE WAS BUSTING HIS ASS TO PROTECT THEM!" I yell.

"I', told its because of our parents." Izzy says. Your parents? Why would that matter?

"I'm told that our parents were mercenaries like many others. The rest of our family as well as the rest of the people aboard the cradle were probably afraid that he'd become one of the mercenaries that attack the Cradles." Izzy explained.

"People who don't know something are most likely to fear it." Katrina says.

"Personally, I don't care for the Cradles, but I'm not going to shoot them down. That would be genocide on a massive level." Katrina says. Hmm? The door's opened.

"Hey everyone." Ayla says as she walks into the room. Alicia's with her as well. Alicia looks a bit timid at Katrina.

"Hey, Alicia…" Katrina says as she walks over to her.

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry for earlier. It was wrong of e to say those things to you. I just get frustrated when people are sick like that. Also, I kinda like the guy." Katrina says.

"But don't try to take him away from me ok?" Katrina challenges.

"Umm ok, thank you." Alicia says quietly. Man I swear she's timid. As I look away from the other girls, I notice something different about the computers monitoring Jacks' health. I don't know if it's good or bad.

"Katrina, take a look at this!" I tell her. She walks over and starts reading the data on the screen. Her eyes just shot wide open and she has her hand over her mouth!

"KATRINA WHAT IS IT!? IS HE GETTING WORSE!?" I yell. Everyone else stares waiting for Katrina to answer.

"Everyone, lets go in there!" Katrina says.

(Jacks' perspective)

Where am I!? Where's the prominence runway!? Every things black! I can't see a thing! AAAAAAHHHHH!!! WHAT WAS THAT!? I just felt another surge of pain! Wait…wait a minute…I'm starting to see something. What is this? Light? It's so bright! The pain! It's disappeared! Izzy !? Ayla!? Alice!? Katrina!? Alicia!? Are you there!? Every thing is starting to clear up. I see…I see…Izzy?

"JACK!" Izzy just ran over into my arms! What the hell happened? I feel weak. Everyone's here, they look happy. Did I miss something?

"What happened? Last thing I remember, I was landing the Blue Blaze onto the runway…and now…I'm here." I say. Ayla just stepped forward.

"Welcome back." She says as she walks over to me. Everyone's coming closer. And…'welcome back'? Everyone is here, even Alicia…the doors opened. It's the Captain and Ms. Haze! I'm trying to get up and salute- Ayla's holding me by the shoulders.

"Don't worry about it Jack. You've gone through quite the ordeal." The captain says.

"From what I've heard, you were sick with Kojima poisoning, right?" He asks.

"Actually sir…I don't know." I tell him.

"Well, you fought hard through it and got better fast. I'm impressed. Kojima poisoning is NASTY business. But you pulled through. Take some time to recover, Jack. You've only fought half the battle here." The captain tells me.

"I tell you what Jack, I keep seeing more promise by the second. You amaze me." Ms. Haze says.

"Thank you Ms. Haze, Captain…" I say to them. Everyone here, I don't even know what happened…but I don't care anymore.

"Thank you. All of you." I say to them.

End of chapter 6

Jack has just recovered from the nasty sickness known to many as "Kojima poisoning" and has come back from his coma. With Alicia on the team now, Jack has four lovely girls who have fallen for him. What kind of new jet are Ayla and Alicia starting?

Coming up, a new face appears in old peace city, the Line Ark squadron strikes again, and jack is still not ready to return to combat.

Who is this new face among the city, how many more attempts will the Line Ark squadron attack, and how will Jack recover?

Find out in Armored Core the Uprising Chapter 7: Into the crosshairs!

See you next job!


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